Maybe I'm Twisted
by Rey
Summary: [Chapter 13 uploaded] Buttercup's dreams lead to a sequence of unprecedented events that may just change the course of Fate... Or will they?
1. Prologue + White Nightmares

Author

Author's Note: Here's a lesson I've learnt. Never be afraid to twist the characters, for, unlike real life, you can undo and restart. Thanks to Kim-Mei for proofreading.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Prologue**

Engulfed in flames, the figure laughed deeply, peering over the side of a low wall into a pit of molten lava, bubbling, scorching gases rising. Unaffected by the heat, it raised a pincered hand and clicked.

A form framed by golden light shimmered into sight nearby, hovering above the flames which licked hungrily at its bare feet, also unaffected. Silvery hair cascaded down its shoulders and back, but not much else could be seen other than a vague outline and a face.

"You remember the rules," it said simply, its voice ringing high over the sound of the fire's blaze.

"Yes," the other figure watching the lava growled. Then, its voice and demeanour changing dramatically as it pronounced prissily with a hint of sarcasm, "I am _not_ allowed to _interfere_ or _influence _directly." It tittered in a most feminine way, holding a pincer to its goateed face.

"Correct," The softer voice warbled, as if it were speaking from underwater. "And you are sure you may do this?"

A roll of parchment was flipped out over the flames, unharmed by the inferno. "M'dear..." Him chuckled, high heels clacking obnoxiously on the glowing stone floor, a deep voice pervading, "It is .. already done."

**Chapter 1 - White Nightmares  
**"For all I know, they're hiding my true purpose..."

Buttercup knotted up the covers, deeply asleep. Twisting and turning restlessly, her eyelids squeezed shut, but the eyes flittered above underneath.

"_No, wait, stay a little while... Just a little longer..." _A voice. Faded. It sounded... sounded familiar. A little like hers, in fact. Was that her speaking? Now she could see in her dream. Just two figures, surrounded by the swirling mist her eyes couldn't seem to penetrate. She couldn't quite make out the figures, though. Who...?

_ "I... I can't... Bee-Cee..." _Bee-Cee? Who...? But... wasn't that kind of close to her name? Intrigued by this mystery, the dream Buttercup willed herself to float closer.

_"But... No! NO!..." _No, the voices were fading away. _No, don't leave me like this! I have to know who you are..._ Buttercup pleaded mentally. But it was no use. Prominent though they had been, the figures eventually faded like the morning mist.

"Wake up, Buttercup!" Something was shaking her. Buttercup groaned, sleep-crusted eyes cracking open.

"Is it m.. morning?" She mumbled sleepily, slowly bringing a hand up to shield the sunlight which shone through one of the circular windows on the far wall.

"Morning!" Bubbles cheerily sounded, her head appearing in Buttercup's view. "It's a Saturday, Buttercup! Rise and shine!" Bubbles hopped onto the bed, jumped a few times, and leaped off to dance downstairs.

Blossom sat by her dressing table combing her hair, which shone auburn when rays of sunlight chanced to glance off it. She took her eyes off herself in the mirror long enough to eye Buttercup, who still lay in bed.

"It's almost ten-thirty, Buttercup. How much longer are you going to laze around in bed? What if the hotline rings?"

_Yeah, whatever..._ Buttercup snorted in reply, and sat up, bunching the covers. She stared down at the green blanket for a few moments, blinking and reorienting herself. _What was that dream...?_

But at that moment, Bubbles zipped back into the room, a beaming smile on her face. "The Professor's taking us to the park today! Yay!" And she cartwheeled around the room joyfully, giggling all around.

Buttercup couldn't help but smile at Bubbles' infectious laughter. Blossom, reacting the same way as Buttercup, slid the brush back into the drawer and hovered up. "Buttercup, you'd better hurry. Bubbles and I going downstairs to eat breakfast now, and we can't wait forever."

As both Bubbles and Blossom hovered down the stairs, chatting excitedly, Buttercup slid out of bed. "Hold that thought," she said to herself, quickly washing up and changing into her usual attire to head downstairs.

"Mmm, this breakfast is really good, Professor!" Bubbles beamed, munching waffles smothered in maple syrup.

"Yeah, it's great you had time to make breakfast for us, let alone take us out today!" Blossom glowed at him brightly, eating her own breakfast of toast and jam.

The Professor smiled at both accounts of praise, replying politely, "Thank you, girls, I'm so glad you're enjoying your breakfasts."

Buttercup hovered to the last empty seat and sat down. Her breakfast, arranged neatly on the plate, was bacon and eggs - two eggs for eyes and a strip of bacon for a smile. She held back a grimace at the cuteness and smiled at the Professor. "It looks good."

_Well, there's nothing else to eat, and I can't cook_, she thought, picking up her fork and knife and setting into the breakfast.

As it turned out, the breakfast wasn't all that bad, although the smiley face was a little harder to handle. Once breakfast was eaten, the family went outside and piled into the car, with the three girls in the backseat, and Professor in the driver's side.

"Seatbelts on?" He asked, glancing backwards. Bubbles giggled and clapped her hands, Blossom nodded, and Buttercup stared out the window moodily.

"Buttercup? Is your seatbelt on?"

"..mhm." Buttercup shrugged and yanked the seatbelt on. The Professor beamed, and started the car. "Good!"

The car backed out of the driveway, and disappeared down the street.

At the park, the girls amused themselves by climbing trees, running around, and playing with the other kids around there. The Professor pulled out some paperwork, glad to be breathing some fresh air now. Bubbles and Blossom had brought a beach ball and they were quite happily tossing it to one another.

Buttercup, too, was glad to be in fresh air. She sat up on a high branch of an oak tree, watching her sisters play. Her legs dangled, and she hummed aimlessly, lost in her thoughts.

"Who could it be," she mused. _If I assume 'Bee-Cee' is me, I still don't have any clues. It'd sounded like a boy's voice, though. Mitch? Nah, he was too weird. Mike? He's too gentle. Hm... it sounds so familiar, too. Like.. like someone I've fought before._

_ "Bee-Cee..." ...hm. "We're the Rowdyruff Boys!" What a joke those three were. Hardly worth a ... "Brick!" Oh my God, that's it. That's the voice. It was Brick._

_ Wait. Why am I dreaming about Brick? He's a boy! Boys are icky... Hmm... cute... Oh God. I have a crush on a dead enemy. This is not good._

_But how? If anyone, I.. should have a crush on Butch. I **should**, anyway. But... Brick. I like Brick... But he exploded. We had to g ~_

_ Wait. Mojo-Jojo created them to be mean. Couldn't I... couldn't I bring them back? Bring him back? And... and find out what's going on? It's too real, that dream, too real... I can't let it go. I have to know. I.. have to talk to Brick._

_ What about the others? ..._

_ Doesn't matter. I just have to keep this a secret. Blossom can't know, she'd tell me it was wrong and go tell the Professor. I can't tell Bubbles. She's too much of a blabbermouth._

_ Tonight. No more dreams, no more nightmares. I have.. have to know._

The Professor smiled as he packed his paperwork. "Girls!" At his call, Blossom, holding the beachball tight, streaked towards the Professor, stopping to hover in front of him, Bubbles following. Buttercup leaped from the tree branch, hovering slowly towards him.

"It's been almost two hours. Time to go home now, before the sun gets too hot."

"Aww," Bubbles whined, "Do we have to?"

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, but we don't want any of you get sunburn, do we?" The Professor chuckled. "Come along, now."

As Buttercup followed the Professor and her two sisters back towards the car, she closed off her thoughts with a simple statement. _Tonight I'll find out._


	2. In Resurrection

Author

Author's Note: You don't have to be amazing to be original. Buttercups and marigolds.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 2 - In Resurrection  
**"Tonight's the night I will change my destiny."

_Tonight_ echoed in Buttercup's mind like a curse. Back in their room, Blossom was reading a book on conversational Dutch, Bubbles was cheerfully drawing what they'd done that day, and Buttercup, "in one of her moods" as Blossom would have put it, stared out the window at the setting sun. Reds and oranges streaked out across the evening sky as she watched, the tops of the clouds blue fading into purple, and the bottoms pink, with flashes of white. _Beautiful_, she thought, but she said nothing. She had to act normal, and to be Buttercup was to be ... be Buttercup.

She had to waste time, more or less. But not waste it, perhaps work out a plan. And the recipe, if you will. _Why Brick_? was her first thought. _I mean, they tried to kill us. They almost succeeded! But... but that was because... they were evil. It was Mojo-Jojo. He... well, whatever he used. Maybe I'm losing my mind._

_ Maybe I am. Maybe I'm insane. Where did this crush come from? And anyway, shouldn't Blossom be the one in love with Brick? We didn't even **know** them, all we did was fight them and be taunted and... _Buttercup shuddered. _Be beaten._

_ But maybe that's why,_ she mused mentally. _Maybe I... I need someone... stronger... I don't like where this is going. Start over, Buttercup._

_ But, Bee-Cee? That's so cute... _Another voice echoed.

_ Start over. Alright. What are little boys made of? Actually, maybe I'd better go ask the Professor that. He'd know. He made us. If he wanted little boys he'd have known how to make them. But... but would it seem strange? _Buttercup paused to glance at her sisters. _Blossom? No, she's too responsible. Bubbles? I can't manipulate her like that, she's my sister. Now, if she wasn't my sister... _Buttercup grinned inwardly. _I'll.. just go ask the Professor... Innocently. Innocence, that's the key right now._

_ And I'm not in love with Brick,_ she told herself. _No. Stupid crush. He's **ugly**, _she reprimanded herself, trying to lie herself into believing it._ But.. I have to... find out, anyway..._

Buttercup hovered up from her seat by the window and slowly floated from the room. Neither of her sisters paid much attention to her departure.

Maybe I'm tired of always being tough. Maybe I want someone to lean on once in a while.

"Professor?" Buttercup's face appeared over the top of the Professor's newspaper. He smiled, folding the paper up and setting it in his lap.

"Yes, Buttercup?"

"Um... I was wondering..." And here she innocently put her hands behind her back, digging a toe into the 'ground' while hovering in midair. "What are little boys made of?"

The Professor blinked. Was she asking where children came from? "Oh... Well, Buttercup, you know that you and your sisters are made out of sugar, spice, and -"

"Everything nice? Uh-huh..." She smiled disarmingly.

The Professor smiled back, and nodded. "So logically, little boys are made out of snips, snails, and puppy dog tails!"

_Puppy dog tails?! _"Oh, thank you, Professor. I was just curious." Buttercup giggled, and hovered back up the stairs.

The Professor picked up his newspaper. "You're welcome, dear." _It's good that she's taking an interest in science_...

That's not bad, is it? I just need... someone.

After dinner, Bubbles, Blossom, and Buttercup were downstairs watching TV. Bubbles, who was having her turn at the remote, elected to watch Puppet Pals. Blossom obligingly watched with her, while Buttercup hovered back and forth, occasionally sending glances at the television.

"Buttercup?" Blossom said, a hint of irritation in her voice. Buttercup stopped "pacing" and turned her gaze downwards. "Yeah?"

"Would you mind sitting down? It is hard to concentrate on the TV when there is a green girl's feet blocking the screen," Blossom said curtly. Buttercup snorted, but slowly descended to sit on the couch. She wouldn't be sitting for long, though, as the Professor soon entered the TV room.

"Now, girls, it's time for bed. Go get ready and I'll come tuck you in later," he nodded at them. Bubbles switched off the TV and streaked up the stairs, giggling. Blossom and Buttercup both elected to hover upstairs slowly. By the time they'd reached their room, Bubbles was already climbing up on the bed with Octi.

Blossom entered their bathroom, and Buttercup, about to follow, appeared to change her mind. "Bubbles?"

The blonde girl looked up, smiling. "Yes, Buttercup?"

"I was wondering... remember, when we... beat the, um, Rowdyruff boys?"

Bubbles giggled happily. "Yeah! I kinda liked kissin' them..."

"Uh-huh." Buttercup coughed; she hadn't exactly enjoyed it. "Well... I wanted to ask you something," She intoned, with a glance over her shoulder towards the bathroom. "If they were normal boys, not all... all evil like they were, which one would you like best?"

Bubbles thought for a moment, scrunching up her face. "Umm... I think I woulda liked the one I was kissin'. Or maybe the one you were kissin', Buttercup." She giggled again. "But maybe you like him, so..."

_Oh, you don't know how wrong you are, Bubbles. But... but I don't love him. It's a crush._

"Oh, okay, then. Don't tell Blossom about it, I think she'd get upset we were talking about them like this..." Buttercup attempted to giggle. Bubbles beamed. "Yeah..."

Buttercup nodded, and hovered off to the bathroom to get washed up, as Blossom exited, already in her nightie.

Buttercup stared at her reflection in the mirror. The outline of herself seemed watery, indistinct, and it slowly formed the image of Brick in her mind. She smiled slightly, tilting her head, watching the image do the same. They said she had no imagination...

_"Bee-Cee." _The nickname echoed in her head. That night, she'd start her own timeline. She'd find out. Changing into her nightie, Buttercup left the bathroom.

The Professor tucked the covers over his three little girls, smiling. He leaned over Bubbles, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Goodnight, Bubbles."

"Goodnight, Blossom." And a kiss to her forehead, as well.

"And goodnight, Buttercup." With a kiss for her, the Professor made sure they were tucked in nice and tight, before switching off the lights and leaving the room.

The wall clock, illuminated by the dim light which flowed through the window, read 3:28 AM. Buttercup opened her eyes, slowly focusing on the wall clock. She breathed in deeply, and slowly glanced to her side. Bubbles and Blossom were both deeply asleep. Listening hard, she focused for any noises downstairs.

No, the Professor was sleeping in his room. It was time.

Slowly, very, very carefully, she crawled out of the covers. Putting her pillow under where she had lay, to make it seem as if she was still there to the half-blind observer, she hovered up. Now she had to get out of the house. _Snips, snails, and puppy dog tails? _Where was she going to find those?

Buttercup hovered down the stairs slowly, into the kitchen. Taking a pair of scissors and a paper bag, she disappeared out the door. She had to find those ingredients, and quickly...

By some sort of pure luck, a stray cat outside on the Utonium driveway was circling a snail! Buttercup could hardly believe her luck. Silently she hovered up behind the cat, and quickly snipped and bagged a few hairs from its tail. The cat 'mrrowed' angrily, turning to spit at Buttercup - but when it saw her, floating in mid-air, it turned and ran, with another loud 'rrrow'. Buttercup blinked and shrugged at the retreating cat, before picking up the snail and dropping it into the bag as well.

"Great," Buttercup mumbled. Now all she needed was a puppy dog's tail. But, jeez... _A puppy dog tail? _But, just then, the sounds of a scuffle behind their trash can could be heard, and she zipped over to investigate.

It turned out to be the cat she'd seen before, and... a dog. A dog! Absolutely impossible luck. At least, that's what she would have thought if she hadn't been excited. Once the cat saw her, it immediately turned to leave, and the dog's reaction was the same, but Buttercup nabbed it before it escaped. It looked at her, tilting its head. Buttercup sighed, frowning.

"I don't want to hurt you, doggy... I hope you'll forgive me." The dog ruffed, with a confused dog expression.

_Snip_.

The dog whined a little, as Buttercup set it down, but otherwise made no noise. It hurried off into the bushes, obviously frightened, the stub of its tail inbetween its legs.

"Oh!" As she glanced inside the paper bag to check on the ingredients, an idea struck her. _I have to add some nice stuff. I don't... don't want them to turn out evil... _Again, she shuddered. Or was that because it was cold? Buttercup quickly hovered up and through their room window. Both her sisters were still fast asleep, she saw with relief.

As quietly as she could, she streaked to their closet and leaned it, to pull out a football, a book on science and technology which she had read and enjoyed greatly, and a baseball. Quietly she hovered back out, without a backwards glance.

Entering the house once more through the front door, Buttercup, clutching her ingredients tightly, made her way to the lab, and down the stairs into it. It was dark, but she could see. 

She piled her ingredients in one corner, being careful to keep the paper bag closed, and streaked around the lab, quickly gathering the last parts of the recipe. A cauldron, a cauldron-stirrer (just to be traditional), and a flask of Chemical X, which the Professor had in small quantities.

Her hands trembling, eyes bright with excitement, Buttercup lifted the paper bag and overturned it.

Snips.

Snail.

Tail.

Grabbing the cauldron stirrer, she mixed it up a bit, before adding the football and the baseball... And finally the book.

While stirring with one hand, Buttercup held the flask of Chemical X in the other.

"Oh, dear..." Buttercup bit her lip, as she lifted the flask above the cauldron... and dropped it in.

There was no explosion. Buttercup stirred a little more, and noticed a concoction bubbling in the cauldron. Quickly she removed the stirrer, and hovered backwards. Had... had she done something wrong? Was this supposed to happen?

The cauldron shook, and Buttercup did also, fearfully. What had she done?

As she watched, the cauldron slowly overturned...

And a red cap rolled out.

Slowly, as if coming from a tunnel into the light, Brick groped his way out of the cauldron. It seemed almost surreal as, after Brick, Boomer rolled out, and Butch clambered out as well. They blinked slowly, adjusting to the dim light in the lab.

"Dude. Where are we?"


	3. The Agreement

Author

Author's Note: New ideas may come hard, but they'll come. Nothing offensive meant by hiding them in the Townsville church. Simply an idea. There's a lot of talking in this episode.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 3 - The Agreement   
**"_Trust_ is a dirty word that comes only from such a liar, but _respect _is something I will earn..." - Green Day

Brick, his eyes adjusted to the darkness, grabbed his cap and jammed it on his head. Boomer, who sat nearby, snickered.

"Afraid of showing your hat hair? Ahahaha..." Brick, however, did not find him so amusing. "Shut up," he snapped. Butch, sitting to Brick's right, glanced around curiously, scratching his head in a quizzical manner.

"Weird place." As his gaze traveled around the room, he noticed a figure standing near the shadows. A figure that was strangely familiar. He stared harder. Something about her was familiar... oh, now he remembered. She hovered up to him, a coy smile on her lips. Enchanting... and she kissed him.

"It's _her_!" Immediately he was up and streaking towards her - but, no, Brick had grabbed his shoe.

"Down, you bastard. If you get her now we won't know where we are. Idiot." Brick yanked and Butch dropped, hitting the ground. Grumbling, he sat back up. Boomer hovered up behind Brick.

"It's that brunette girlie," he sneered. 

"It's _Buttercup_, moron," she replied promptly. _What? Why'd I say that?_

Brick allowed himself a hint of a grin. "Yeah, well, whatever, _girlie_. As long as you know where the f_ck we are, we don't give a damn what your name is."

Looking miffed, Butch climbed to his feet. "Yeah. What leader-boy said." And he glared at Buttercup, trying to intimidate, and regain some of his lost pride.

Buttercup gave a sweet, disarming smile. "You're in the Professor's lab, and I just recreated you."

The boys blinked. Blinked. Blinked. "What?" The three asked incredulously, in unison.

"No way," Butch growled. "You're f_cked up. Delusional bitch." Boomer nodded in agreement, crossing his arms. "We don't buy your stupid story, girlie. Now tell us why we're here." Brick scowled as well. "Dude, quit lying."

Buttercup just smirked. _Oh, he's cute when he's angry ~ stay focused!_ "You can turn around and check. I really did create you. The cauldron that you came from. I sacrificed my football _and_ my baseball _and_ my favorite book for you idiots! Why can't you show a little gratitude!?"

Again, the boys blinked. Boomer eyed her. "You're into guy stuff?"

Butch leaned towards Brick and muttered, "Lesbian." They snickered together.

Buttercup sighed. It was obvious they wouldn't trust her, so... maybe she had to gain their respect. But how?

"Yeah. I'm into football. And look, even if you don't believe that I recreated you, you're gonna need my help anyway."

Brick raised a brow skeptically. "And... why would we need your help, girlie?"

"It's simple." Buttercup, inwardly, was excited. Was she going to get to argue with him? "Technically you aren't even supposed to be here, and neither am I. The lab is off-limits to us girls -"

"Us?" Boomer interjected, also adopting a bemused expression. "The other two freaks are still around?"

"Yeah. My sisters. And don't call 'em freaks, dork. Anyway, as I was saying, you won't have anywhere to go without me. Leave this house and go around Townsville, everyone's scared out of their wits of you. You don't have money or nothing. Sure, you can go steal stuff, but if you're gonna live like that... I don't wish you the best of luck. Besides, I gotta help hide you, I created you dudes. Blossom isn't gonna like you guys at all."

"Blossom? Oh yeah, that nice piece of -" Butch began, but Brick elbowed him in the gut to shut him up. "Go on," he said reasonably, looking more open. Maybe he was finally seeing logic.

"Well, I don't really know where I can hide you guys..." Butch snorted, standing to one side, as if he'd expected this.

"How about Mojoke's lab?" Boomer asked, half-helpfully.

"Jeez, no," Buttercup winced. "You don't want to be stuck with that guy." Buttercup grinned, imitating Mojo's stance and voice. "'I am Mojo-Jojo and there is only one Mojo-Jojo who is I, Mojo-Jojo, for I am the only Mojo-Jojo and there shall be no other Mojo-Jojo like I, Mojo-Jojo...'"

Butch snickered, and Boomer grinned. Brick, however, simply shook his head. "Alright, we get the idea. But where do you suggest?"

"Well, I was thinking... The... Townsville church?" Buttercup grimaced, expecting a huge "no-thank-you". However, Brick slowly gained a smirk.

"The... church, you said? What day is it, anyway?" He mentioned a question casually.

"Oh, it's really early on Sunday." She blinked slowly, trying to digest this. "You.. you guys don't mind?"

Butch nudged Boomer, and Boomer grinned. "Nope, not at all. It's only temporary, right?"

"Y.. yeah..." She had the feeling that they were up to something, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. "For now, though. Shall we shake? Allies... friends?" She said hopefully, holding out her hand.

Brick glanced sideways at his brothers, 'asking'. Butch shrugged in a "yeah, why not?" kind of way, while Boomer nodded.

Allowing a slight smile to cross his face, he stepped forward, and shook Buttercup's hand. "Allies, friends." Buttercup smiled back, just about going into a trance, then.

Brick coughed, and behind him, he heard Butch snicker. "Buttercup. You can let go of my hand now."

Buttercup twitched, and dropped his hand. "R... right. Well, it's late and all, so we ought to get you down there quick, so I can get some sleep." She noticed the boys tensing up, as they were about to blast off.

"Wait! No!" They looked to her, confused. "Let's... go by the front door."

Boomer blinked, looking up. "Can't go through the roof?"

Buttercup coughed, heading for the stairs. "This is the basement."

"Oh." And so the boys hovered after her.

Once outside, as they were streaking across the night sky like comets in the direction of Townsville's church, Boomer called over to Buttercup, "Yo, girlie. Mind if we pause to have a gang chat? You go somewhere and not listen in."

Deciding not to make a big deal out of being called 'girlie', she shrugged. "...Sure." And spiralled downwards towards the roof of the nearest building, to sit and wait. The three boys huddled together in mid-air, football style.

Boomer glanced down towards Buttercup. "..I think she's okay. At least she's trying to help us and not going ballistic and trying to kiss us and crap like that."

Brick reminded him, "That's because we didn't go ballistic on her."

"Oh. Right."

Butch frowned slightly. "Yo, leaderboy. I think she's got the hots for you. You saw how she lost it when you shook her hand."

Brick paused, to stare at Butch. But his brother was right, she _had_ gone a little blank. _But she's not all that bad... I don't think she's too bad of a kis ~ What am I thinking?! _"Well. Yeah... We ought to keep an eye out, then. But she _is _helping us, Butch."

Butch shrugged, the frown dissipating. "You're right, I guess. And hey, she's pretty cute..." He snickered. "Alright. We go with her." They could already see Buttercup getting impatient on the roof, arms folded across her chest.

They broke up the huddle and streaked down towards her. "Yo Buttercup," Butch said, gaining a disbelieving glance from Boomer at hearing him use her name, "We've checked you out and decided you're okay. Let's go." Buttercup muttered, standing up. "It's about time. Come on, the sun's gonna rise in an hour or two..."

The four of them streaked off into the sky, which was slowly, but surely, getting brighter.


	4. Chaos Ensues

Author

Author's Note: More talking, more action. Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Thanks, Sh'moona, for the ideas. I think this one's a little longer.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 4 - Chaos Ensues  
**"And let us see what the night will bring."

As the last stars began fading from view in the sky, they reached the church. Buttercup landed, and the boys followed her lead as she darted through the large double doors and into the huge hall. Paling moonlight shone through the stained glass windows, painting patterns on the stone floor.

"Whoa," Boomer commented, eyes wide in awe, and his voice echoed through the room to the roof. "Big."

"Yeah," Butch agreed simply. Brick simply surveyed the space in silence.

"Well, Buttercup," And Brick, as well, earned a disbelieving glance from Boomer at having used her name, "Where do you propose we spend the rest of the night?"

Buttercup pondered this for a moment or two. _God, his voice is soooo dreamy... No. Cut it out. Focused._ "Well... there's not much of night left anyway. Just find somewhere where you can hide yourselves for a couple hours or so. I'll be around in the morning with some breakfast, and then we'll find you someplace permanent."

Boomer glanced around, and shrugged to Butch. Butch shrugged as well. "A'ight, girlie."

"Oh, and... and try to keep it quiet, okay? I'd definitely get into trouble if anyone found out you guys were living ... let alone living here," Buttercup frowned. The boys smirked.

"If we get into a mess, we'll let you know, hm?" Boomer grinned. Brick just glanced at his brothers before soaring up towards the ceiling and glancing around from a higher viewpoint.

"Hey guys," he called down. "There's a little nook over here. Kinda small, but I think it'll hold us. Not something I'd want to live in, though, but it's good for a night. Boomer ascended to have a look as well, and Buttercup was about to follow, when Butch muttered to her, "Hey, girl."

"...What?" She blinked at him.

"I know you've got somethin' for leader boy over there. Now I don't got a problem with that, but you'd better not mess with his mind..." Butch grinned and cracked his knuckles, before streaking up to join his brothers. Buttercup frowned a little as she followed, light green trailing dark green.

On closer inspection, the "nook" Brick was referring to was just that: A nook, up on the unexplored "second level" of the church. But it was big enough, and comfortable enough for a while, although it looked a little dusty. Boomer hovered over and settled down on the floor.

"Yeah, dusty. But we'd better let girlie here get some sleep." He waved a hand lazily towards Buttercup. Butch joined Boomer in the nook, and Brick looked towards Buttercup, almost anticipating her thoughts.

"Yeah, we'll be fine. We can take care of ourselves, you know." Brick gazed at her, with a smile.

Buttercup laughed, a little nervously. "Okay. Um. I'll be around with breakfast in the morning. Goodnight, Brick."

"Later, Bee-Cee." He chuckled, and streaked over to the nook to join his brothers.

_Bee-Cee?_

It's never been so wrong, it's never felt so right.

Brick watched Buttercup leave the church from their high-up vantage point. Butch was settling down a few feet away to sleep, and Boomer was leaning against the wall, eyeing Brick.

_She's cute, yeah. And... and she's nice. Yeah. And I think she likes me. Dude. My brain hurts._

"Yo. Brick."

_Does she really like me?_

"Yeah?" He replied, sounding slightly distracted. Boomer raised a brow cynically at his lack of attention, and focus. Brick didn't even seem to be listening to him at all.

_I think I'm starting to like her..._

"Dude. Look at me." Brick glanced at him, eyes narrowed in slight annoyance.

_I've only known her for so long..._

"The hell you want?" He scowled, tilting his cap backwards. Boomer had interrupted his thoughts, after all.

_Oh, Bee-Cee. I wish I could ask you._

"Sheesh. Don't have to be a bitch just 'cause your girlfriend left." Boomer muttered.

"Boomer, we've only know her for like an hour. Kinda fast for her to become my girlfriend, huh?" Brick retorted sarcastically. Boomer shrugged, as Butch looked up from where he rested.

"Dude. I had a short chat with her just now. Frankly, it's fine if she has the hots for you, Brick -" And at this, the redheaded one glowered - "But I just said if she messed with your mind, I'd mess her up bad."

"...You didn't have to threaten her, Butch. She helped us out, you know."

"Yeah, well. Just want her to know we're on to her." Butch shrugged, rolling over. "Now will you guys shut up? I'm trying to get a little shuteye here. I'm tuckered, yanno."

Boomer glanced at Brick. "Sorry about that crack 'bout you and... Buttercup." He lowered his voice, noticing Butch twitch in irritation. "Just... ya know, don't get too close to the girlie. Don't know what she's on about yet."

Brick turned his eyes away. "Yeah, well."

Boomer watched him stare at the church ceiling for a moment more, before rolling onto his back to get some sleep.

Is this a dead end? What do I do now?

"Wake _up_, Buttercup!" Bubbles' voice trilled happily in Buttercup's face. She groaned. _It... it's morning already?_ Hadn't she just plopped into bed...?

"..what?" She grumbled, grabbing a nearby pillow and holding it over her face.

"Good _morning_!" Bubbles giggled, cheerful as always. "It's Sunday and the Professor made us breakfast again and I bet it's really really good!"

Blossom, at her usual place by her vanity stand, chuckled, brushing her hair. "Gee, Buttercup, you look awful tired, like you haven't gotten a wink of sleep. Are you alright?" _Sisterly concern,_ Buttercup thought.

"Yeah, Blossom. Just didn't sleep too well," Buttercup muttered, managing to sit up. "Gah. Bright. Turn out the lights, will you?" She glanced irritably towards Bubbles.

Bubbles complied by closing the curtains. "There you go, Buttercup! Now rise and shine, get washed up, and we'll all go down to eat breakfast together!" She beamed brightly, dancing around the room. Buttercup sighed, rolling out of bed onto the floor, and hovering into the bathroom.

Breakfast was different for Buttercup today. A bowl of cereal and fresh milk, with strawberries. Buttercup smiled at the Professor, and thanked him. It wasn't usual for him to have enough time to make them all breakfast, and she supposed she should be grateful as she sat down to eat.

"Mmm," She said, popping the last strawberry into her mouth a couple minutes later. And it was just in time, too, for the Hotline started buzzing upstairs almost immediately after.

"I'll get it!" Blossom streaked up the staircase. Buttercup and Bubbles both tuned their hearing to that room, and heard such:

"Powerpuff Girls! Blossom! The Rowdyruff Boys are terrorizing the people down at Townsville church!" The Mayor was heard to cry in an anguished tone. Buttercup grimaced visibly, but neither the Professor nor Bubbles noticed.

And then Blossom spoke. "What? The _Rowdyruff Boys, _Mayor? Are you sure?"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure!"

"Alright, Mayor! We're on it!" She slammed the hotline's phone down and streaked back downstairs. "Come on, girls! The Rowdyruff Boys are back and they're terrorizing people at the Townsvil ~"

"We heard, Blossom!" Bubbles sounded terrified. "They're .. they're back?"

Buttercup was silent, watching the exchange. "Yes, Bubbles, but there's no time to lose! We gotta go now!" Blossom cried.

The Professor looked worried, and asked quickly, "Girls, do you mind using -"

_Crash_.

"- the door?"

"There!" Blossom pointed towards the church, where frightened screams and shouts could be heard. All three girls spiraled downwards, Buttercup trembling with fear and with anger. _I told those boys not to cause trouble!... Why, Brick?..._

The girls burst through the double doors of the church. "Freeze, Rowdyruff Boys!" Blossom yelled in her most commanding tone. The people who hid fearfully behind the pews cheered, and the boys, who were currently zipping around the ceiling, stopped and gazed down. A brave, imposing Blossom, and next to her, a frightened-looking Bubbles, who was trying her best to look brave anyway, and behind them both, a guilty-looking Buttercup.

"Dude. The girls are here," Boomer commented.

"You're fast," Butch muttered.

"Shh," Brick shushed them. He raised his voice. "Yo, what'd we do? We just woke up and we wanted a little exercise!"

"Yeah, we haven't even gone down there yet!" Boomer added, pointing down at the pews indignantly.

"Hey, Buttercup, where's breakfast?" Butch called to Buttercup, who flinched visibly, her cover blown. Boomer elbowed him in the side. "Nice going, dumbass." Butch just shrugged.

Slowly, Blossom turned to face Buttercup, Bubbles still staring at the boys fearfully. "_You?!_"

Buttercup chuckled nervously, averting her eyes. "Um... Yes, Blossom?"

"You have a _lot_ of explaining to do, Buttercup Utonium," Blossom snapped, and glared.

Bubbles whispered towards Blossom, "I think there's something more important right now, Blossom..." and waved a hand towards the ceiling, where the boys hovered near.

Blossom blinked, and turned back around. "Right, Bubbles. So, Rowdyruff Boys! How, _how_ did you come back?"

"Um." Butch blinked. "Should we tell her, Brick?"

Behind Blossom's and Bubbles' back, Buttercup hovered, waving her arms and shaking her head 'no' frantically.

"We... Um." Brick looked at his brothers. "Jeez, help me out here, would ya?"

Boomer shrugged. "Uh. We got Buttercup to do it in her sleep. 'cause, you know, it sucked being dead. But you can't arrest us, right? We haven't done anything wrong, right?" He laughed nervously, blinking slowly.

Bubbles actually giggled. "He's right, Blossom. We can't do anything to them, 'cause they didn't do anythin' bad yet. They don't sound too evil, neitha." She giggled again happily. "Maybe they could be our friends!"

"I don't know, Bubbles. You can't judge a book by its cover." Bubbles simply looked confused, but smiled anyway. "Okay, whatever you say, Blossom."

"What do you think, man?" Brick looked to his brothers. Boomer shrugged.

"I say we make up with them or somethin'. At least they can get us a place to stay. As long as they don't bother us after that, I don't give a damn, they can go crime-bustin' all they want."

"Well... sounds good to me," Boomer nodded, "But I don't quite like any of them. They're dumb girlies, the hell do they know?" Butch tilted his head. "Yeah, I guess you're right, but we shou'n't be queer to 'em if they're gonna help us out, ya know?"

Brick listened, frowning slightly. "I agree with both of you. You think they'll take it?"

Butch smirked knowingly, eyeing Brick. "I know Buttercup will."

Brick hovered forward from his brothers. "Yo, girls. We got a proposition to make."

"Well, go on," Blossom tried not to snap at him. They were the enemy, after all...! How could... but... why?

"We ain't looking for trouble here, and we swear we won't go stirring it up intentionally. What we want is a place to stay, and that's all. We don' mind becomin' friends or allies here, you get?" Brick gazed at Blossom hopefully.

Blossom sighed, turning to her sisters. She had to be reasonable. "Well, what do you girls think?"

"I think we should go for it," Buttercup replied immediately, blushing for for reasons unknown, and glancing away.

Blossom blinked, confused, and turned to Bubbles. "How about you?"

"Uh-huh... Well, they look nice 'nuff," she giggled.

Blossom sighed again, turning back to speak to the boys, a resigned expression on her face.

"...Alright, we accept your proposition. Friends and.. or.. allies," she said finally, with a nod.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	5. Mealtime Dilemma

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Thanks again to Sh'moona. Don't worry, the action's coming soon. I don't expect this one to be particularly long.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 5 - Mealtime Dilemma  
**"Brunch is better than breakfast. People fall in love over brunch, you know."

The six of them flew over Townsville, creating a rainbow of colors which seemed to fall and fade from the sky like golden rain. Blossom flew up front alone, leading the way for their cavalcade, Bubbles after her, with Butch following. Boomer was second to last, with Brick and Buttercup together bringing up the rear. 

Blossom, whose hair bow fluttered as she flew, had, strangely, a scowl on her face. _Buttercup went and brought back one of our strongest enemies, and she says they're nice, huh? Nice, my_... In her mind, she used a word that she normally wouldn't have out loud. _Oh, dear... They're beginning to affect me already._

Bubbles was happily chattering away to a Butch who flew alongside, though he didn't appear to be listening. "And then we went to the park, an' Buttercup went and sat by herself on her favorite tree an' me an' Blossom played ball -"

"Football?" Butch perked slightly, trying to humor Bubbles. He glanced towards her, adopted an expression of interest, and she smiled at him.

"Nuh, we played catch with a beach ball, but I don't mind playing football with Buttercup. She always wins an' stuff, though."

Butch chuckled slightly, turning his eyes back down to the buildings that they passed. "Huh. Cute. Maybe we can have a game some time, the six of us. Not football, since you don't seem to like it."

"Okay!" Bubbles giggled, as her usual cheerful self.

Boomer, a yard or two behind them, seemed rather sulky. Or at least thoughtful. He streaked along, a slight frown on his face. _Yeah, well, like I said. The hell do these girlies know?_

Buttercup, who had more or less gotten over her embarrassment, was opening up to Brick. "And then I mixed it all together and you guys came out..."

Brick laughed to himself quietly. "Yeah, I know what happens from there. Anyway, have you figured out the reason why we 'xploded last time I remember?"

Buttercup shrugged, doing a half barrel roll to continue flying on her back, adopting a relaxed posture. "Dunno still, but maybe it's 'cause we were nice to you guys. Didn't seem like you enjoyed it very much, anyway."

"Yeah, well, who'da figured? I mean, we exploded, no big deal." Brick smirked sideways at her, Buttercup simply rolling her eyes.

Blossom interrupted their conversation by calling back, "We're home!" and plummeting downwards towards the Utonium household. One by one, like fighter jets answering a radio order, they each took the plunge.

Once all six of them had touched down safely, Blossom, who had her hands on her hips, exclaimed, "Alright, then. Bubbles and I will go in to get you boys some brunch, and you boys will stay out he ~"

"Hey, who are you to order us around?" Boomer impulsively snapped.

Blossom frowned. "Unless you don't want brunch, you should stay outside. The Professor's having a nice quiet day inside and he would object if you came in to ravage the house and he wouldn't give you b ~"

Butch interrupted her, "Yeah, alright. I'm starving. Shut _up_, Boomer," he glared sideways. Boomer muttered to himself, looking away.

"W-well... Okay..." Bubbles smiled nervously. "Buttercup, keep an eye on them, okay?"

"..Mhm," Buttercup shrugged, as if she wasn't really paying attention to Bubbles. It did indeed appear as if all her attention was focused on gazing at Brick, who studied her carefully with a smile.

"Yeah, I'll help you keep my bro's in line," Brick pronounced, reaching over to touch Buttercup's cheek. Behind him, Boomer gagged, and Butch stuck a finger down his throat.

Blossom appeared impervious to their reactions, but Bubbles giggled and waved at them. "We'll be right back!" And streaks of baby blue and pink disappeared into the house.

"Come on, dude," Boomer yanked on Butch's sleeve. "We'll leave the _lovers_ alone," he scowled, laying emphasis heavily on the word 'lovers'. But neither Buttercup nor Brick responded.

In the kitchen, Blossom pulled bread out of the cupboards. "How about sandwiches?"

Bubbles giggled brightly, taking out a jar of peanut butter and some grape jelly. "Yeah! Peanut butter and jelly, mm."

The pair set about making the sandwiches.

"Brick?" Buttercup said, after a while of them sitting side by side on the Utonium front lawn, admiring the blue sky. She reached to lay a hand on his shoulder, and smile. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Try me," He glanced to her, tilting his head slowly, and smiling back.

"Well, um..." Buttercup turned her eyes back to the sky, a slight blush reaching her cheeks. "I was wondering... if... you liked me?"

"Kind of soon to be asking that, Bee-Cee," Brick grinned slyly, "But yeah, I guess I do. Kinda. You're cute," He said, tweaking her cheek.

Buttercup laughed softly, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Thanks. You're cute too."

"Brunch is served!" Bubbles beamed, streaking out with a tray of sandwiches and a picnic table cloth, Blossom following behind with some Pepsi. They spread out the food, Boomer and Butch hurrying to feed themselves. Brick and Buttercup took their time, though, arriving after Brick's two brothers had eaten three sandwiches each. Blossom winced, watching them.

"Boys, don't you have any table manners?" She snapped.

"Skrrnf," Boomer mumbled through a full mouth. "Noo. Good food."

"Sskryeah." Butch agreed.

Bubbles frowned, hovering down to them. "If you're going to eat around us, you haffta eat like normal people."

"Nnph. Stupid blon -" Butch began, but he was cut short by Boomer elbowing him hard.

"Hmrrph." Boomer glanced up, scowling slightly. "Fine. You want us to do what? Eat slowly? Chew our food two hundred times?"

Brick flew across, smacking the back of Boomer's head, grabbing a drink, and landing in front of the tray of sandwiches, across from his brothers. "Even chewing it at all would be too hard for you."

"Yeah, well," Butch smirked at Brick, "Not all of us are weaklings that spend all their time readin' sh_t books on manners, yanno."

Buttercup landed next to Brick, her sisters landing to complete their small party. "_I_ could take you on, Butch."

"Oh yeah? Bring it."

"... Right after brunch," Buttercup grinned.

Bubbles' brow creased into a frown, laying a hand on Butch's shoulder. "Don't fight with him, Buttercup, it wouldn't be very nice at all." Butch winced, tucking his head down into his shoulders, attempting to hide his reddening cheeks.

"Um... Bubbles, do you mind?" He grated. Bubbles blinked at him, removing her hand to take a sandwich and begin eating neatly. Buttercup, a seat away from them, snickered, but otherwise was silent. She didn't feel like embarrassing Butch further, no matter how satisfying it would have been. Not at that moment, anyway. 

Rey: Nope. It wasn't long at all. I won't be submitting many (if at all) fics/chapters for the next week and a half, or so. Major exams coming up. After that period, I'll be back in writing. Thanks for reading. 

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	6. New Home

Author

Author's Note: After a bit of meandering, we're back to Him's evil plan. Shall we learn more about that strange figure, then? I think we will... Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Sh'moona's ideas help, and thanks very much, mate. Had enough time on Thursday and Friday night to write this.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 6 - New Home  
**"Secret Santa in the sky, when will I get my share?" - Semisonic

"Oh, look at them, Mr. Quackers... Aren't they just adorable?" Him laughed prissily, holding his rubber duck. He reclined in a bright pink sofa, one long leg held in the air.

"Oh, I just **hate the Powerpuff Girls!** And their little boyfriends, too... Their love won't get in the way, will it, Mr. Quackers?" His expression gained an air of surprise. "Oh, what's that, Mr. Quackers?" He held the duck up to his ear, and squeaked it. "Oh, yes yes yes yes yes... But fight fire with fire? Love is just **horrible**," he growled. "Instead... I think I shall fight fire with water, don't you think that's a better idea, Mr. Quackers? Perhaps one of their own shall turn against them, and then..." Him paused, his voice echoing dark and deep. "And then, they shall _all_ be crushed. Perhaps the traitor first, though? Because she... he... it... deserves to be punished. I never liked traitors, did you, Mr. Quackers?"

"Dear me, they're getting close, aren't they?" Him laughed at some ironic joke, clapping his pincered hands together delightedly, as the television he watched zoomed up on Brick and Buttercup. "Ohhh... But I _ will_ have one of their own number betray them. And I don't think _anyone_ will get in the way... and then we'll see what _Her_ has to say, oh yes, we will!"

"Having fun, are we, now?" The angelic, warbling voice held a tint of sarcasm, spoken by a figure which had appeared in the room suddenly with a pop. "I expect you believe your plan to work?"

"Oh, why wouldn't it?" Him laughed again, placing a claw over his black-lipsticked mouth. "I'm not interfering with the girls _directly_, am I?"

"You underestimate th -"

"I HAVE NOT!" Him snarled, growing into a snarling demon, and, just as suddenly, shrinking back. "I will not be spoken to in my own home like that, my dear," He gave a wretched smile, "And I must ask you to leave now. So... Goodbye..."

"If you insist," the figure laughed cynically. It faded, leaving behind but an echo of glowing light before that, too, disappeared. Him sighed, holding his rubber duck.

"Oh, Mr. Quackers. I'm surrounded by fools. No, not you, Mr. Quackers, you're a very smart duck."

"Hey, so, now what?" Butch snapped his fingers in Brick's face, the other hand clamped over a soft drink can. Brick blinked slowly, looking up from his sandwich. Buttercup had gone to chat with her sisters awhile, leaving him to stare at his food.

"..Wha?" Brick frowned slightly. "'scuse me. Say what?"

Boomer snickered, and raspberried from behind Butch's back. "I said, now what? We came to th'girlies' house, ate their food. Tell you one thing, I ain't stayin' with 'em. We gotta get our own place, ya know? Preferably where they won't bug us all the time."

"Geesh, why don't you ask 'em? They know this town better'n us." Brick lifted the can of Pepsi and downed a couple gulps.

"You know what, Brick? For a dumb bastard in love, you sure come up with some ideas. Ask the girlies? Why didn't _I _think of that?" Boomer snorted. "Alright, fine. Butch, you go."

"No way, dude. _You_ go," Butch glared at the blonde one seated behind him.

"Don't make me kick your ass, bro'."

"Huh, you kick my ass? Get outta my face, yo!" Butch struck out at him threateningly.

"Hey. Hey, dudes. Don't be fightin' yaselves here." Brick held out his arms, coming between the two. Over Brick's outstretched hands, Butch and Boomer glared daggers at each other. "I'll go, if it's so f_cking difficult for you two."

"Yeah, Brick. Go talk to your girlfriend. We'll wait forever for you." Butch smirked. "Boomer, grab holda coppertop here, he's just _lookin'_ for a chance to go talk to his sweet'eart. I'll go talk to the girlies."

Butch blasted off, soaring upwards and landing on the roof of the house lightly, where the three girls sat chatting, and admiring the boys... Well, two of them were.

"Yo. Girlies. We gotta talk here." He gave a half salute, and Bubbles giggled.

"Uh-huh. Watcha wanna talk about, Butch?" She beamed. Butch shuffled uncomfortably, and raised an eyebrow, as Bubbles' two sisters looked on, mildly confused.

"Uh. Me an' the bros talked about it, and we decided we ain't gonna stay wit' you three. At yer place, I mean."

"We weren't planning for that," Blossom pronounced curtly. "In fact, we were just conversing on that subject."

"Yeah," Buttercup tilted her head. "Thought we'd drop you guys off at the clock tower. No one ever goes up there, and it's easy to hide in, 'cause we're always flying about the town and people're used to seeing us in the skies."

"'s the problem of furniture an' stuff, tho'," Bubbles piped up. "We dunno where to -"

"'salright," Butch interrupted hurriedly. "We won' need much, yanno, guys and all, maybe a buncha mattresses, somethin' to sit on..." He shrugged, holding out his hands. "Ain't asking for much."

"What's he taking so long for?" Brick frowned, sounding a little suspicious. Boomer smirked, shoving him sideways.

"Get off it, dumb bastard. Butch ain't hitting on your girlfriend, I'm sure of tha'. If anythin', he's probably got eyes for that Blossom there, she's a nice round pieca ~"

"Ya just _love_ calling Blossom a nice piece of ass. Wonder what it means," Brick leered. Boomer just shrugged, scowling slightly. 

"Don't get the wrong idea here, yo. I don't like those girls at all, a'ight? So get off me."

"If you say so," Brick grinned, tilting his cap. "... Oh, and Buttercup ain't my girlfriend."

"Yeah, bro. What_eeeeever_ you say."

A muscle in Butch's cheek twitched, as he watched the three girls talk. It was horribly embarrassing being left to stand there and wait while his brothers watched on. "Can't you.. talk any faster?"

"Mhm." Blossom stood, and was followed by her sisters. "Come on, as soon as Boomer and whatsisname -"

"Brick!" Buttercup bared her teeth. "His name is _Brick._"

"Yeah, yeah, okay. As soon as Boomer and Brick are done e ~"

"We're right here," Boomer said, as the redhead and the blonde touched down behind Blossom. She blinked a few times, and shrugged.

"Did you guys pack up the food?" She turned to glare at them accusingly, as if they'd committed a heinous crime. Brick put up his hands in a peaceful gesture, and Boomer stepped back.

"Hey, we cleaned up. It's all good, you can depend on us," Boomer smirked. Somehow, that smirk didn't reassure Blossom very much, and she tilted her head towards Bubbles.

"Would you go check, Bubbles?" She asked. Bubbles beamed.

"Okay!" She disappeared down the edge of the roof.

"Well, about business," Blossom's gaze followed Bubbles' path before returning to glance towards Butch, and end on Brick and Boomer. "As we've already told your brother, we've decided to set you three up in the clock tower downtown... We found kind of a secret room in there, away from all the mechanism and stuff. Is that alright? Since you don't want to stay here -"

"- And Blossom doesn't want you around," Buttercup interjected. Blossom shot a glare at her before continuing.

"How does that sound to you?"

Brick shrugged. "You know more about it, personally, I say we go visit the place. What's in there, anyway?"

Bubbles reappeared over Butch's shoulder, almost hugging him from behind, beaming from ear to ear. "They did a great job of cleaning up! All the dishes are washed an' everything." Butch winced, but otherwise did not retaliate, though his face surely began to turn a light shade of red. Boomer smirked, elbowing Brick, and they snickered together.

"Shut up, you guys," Butch muttered. Bubbles just giggled and bounced over to join Blossom, who appeared completely oblivious to the brotherly fight.

"Right, well. I think we'll show the boys the tower now..." She trailed off, and, as the pink light streaked across the sky, it was joined by a navy blue one which trailed behind, a dark green and a light blue, and finally light green and red, a rainbow of colors.

One by one, the entire gang of six landed on the clock tower's roof. Blossom, who looked tired from having to manage three extra "team" members, allowed Buttercup to take over. The brunette led to the long peak of the roof, where a large trapdoor was hidden under a manhole cover, which was strategically welded on top to conceal as much as was possible. Buttercup lifted and held the trapdoor open as the five of them trooped in, Buttercup the last.

Blossom tugged a string and a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling illuminated the inky darkness. The boys could see it was a relatively spacious room, but it was dusty, with cobwebs hanging off the ceiling. There appeared to be no sources of outside light, though the walls seemed to have cracks cut neatly into them which were actually windows disguised to look, from the outside, like solid wall. A single chair sat by an abandoned card table in one corner, with a lamp, bulb blown, plugged into an electrical socket nearby, one of the only ones.

After a pause in which the boys digested their new surroundings, Brick shrugged.

"I like it. Let's move in." Butch nodded agreement. Boomer, however, tilted his head, taking another glance around.

"I like it too, but it's kinda bare. Where are we gonna sleep? We 'tleast need a couch."

"Um, well..." Bubbles looked to the ceiling, as if for inspiration, digging a foot into the floor.

"We... might have some extra mattresses around the house, doncha think, Blossom? And.. maybe we can ask the Mayor if he can spare a couch or something from his office...?" Buttercup looked questioningly towards Blossom.

"Well, I don't know..." Blossom frowned.

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeease?" Bubbles and Buttercup pleaded with wide eyes, as the boys looked on, bemused.

"Oh, okay."

"Yay!" Buttercup and Bubbles celebrated, Buttercup going so far as to kiss Brick, who responded with a deep blush and a chaste peck on her cheek.

"Cheer while you can, girls," Him sneered, watching them in the ripples of his bathtub water. "Oh, Mr. Quackers, be a little more patient. My plan to destroy the _Powerpuff _Girls and hit one in Her face will come soon! Just be patient..."

Rey: Hmm. What can Him be up to?.. I wonder. I won't be submitting many (if at all) fics/chapters for the next week and a half, or so. Major exams coming up. After that period, I'll be back in writing. Thanks for reading.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	7. Temptations, Betrayals

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Thanks to proofreader of previous episodes Kim-Mei, idea-providers Shimona, DragonShadow, Private Public, and ThatGirl, and to people who reviewed my stories. It's why I update, you know. Look. It's an unknown friend of Him's! That you shall not know the name of! Unless I decide to disclose it, of course. Exams still ever-pressing, sigh.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 7 - Temptations, Betrayals**

"So good of you to have me, dah-lin'," Him giggled to the second figure, whose face was concealed by a car. This second figure lay underneath the car, apparently fiddling at it with some tools.

"Good t'see you agen, deah," The voice underneath the car drawled. "Pass th' wrench, would ye?"

"Why, certainly," Him preened, unceremoniously kicking a red toolbox under the car. The voice chuckled.

"Y' nevir change, d'ya?"

"Am I supposed to?"

"Well, Brick, this is the life, eh?" Boomer snickered, holding up a half-full Pepsi can towards their coppertopped leader, who stared out of their 'espionage' window blankly. Butch simply snorted.

The girls had done a good enough job of making the boys' small living quarters comfortable. There were three mattresses (no spare beds around Townsville), a couch and a few chairs, a lot of donated lamps, and a cupboard or two. The ever willing-to-forgive citizens of the town had even donated food and drinks, although they weren't quite sure where their donations were heading to.

After a lengthy pause in which Boomer glared at Brick, waiting for a response, he tried again. "Thinking about your girlfriend, huh? Not surprising, he's always off in his own world."

A muscle in Brick's cheek twitched. "Shut up, blondie," he growled, tilting his cap and glowering back towards Boomer.

Butch rolled his eyes and scoffed, "And just yesterday he was telling us not to fight. You guys f_ck each other up, I don't give a rat's ass. Just don't wake me up." He beat his pillow, as if trying to force it into submission, and collapsed, soon disappearing into sleep.

_Buuuutch..._ A voice called coyly in his head. He appeared to be floating amongst some misty, cloud-like substance, which reminded him greatly of herds of sheep surrounding and pressing in on him. He lifted his head slowly, to glare out at the great .. great presence which struck some slight fear into even himself.

"The hell do you want?" He growled, but his voice sounded small and insignificant. The presence chuckled nastily, those waves of smoke enveloping him deeper.

_You don't really like those girls, do you, Butch? _The voice chose not to answer his question. _You're just putting up with them... don't you secretly wish you could... could, maybe... destroy them?_

"What? What the f_ck are you talking about?" Butch, in his dream, was getting slightly unnerved. And, as most would know, when Butch was unnerved, he was mad.

_Oh, you can't lie to me, Butch... The Rowdyruffs hate dumb girlie-girls,_ the voice gave a high-pitched giggle. Butch balled his hands into fists.

"Shut up. You don't know me," He snarled rebelliously, anger flashing in green eyes. "You can't, you won't."

_You can always join me, Butch. Join me in my fight one day, soon. Help me destroy them. You know you want to,_ it laughed maliciously. _But I'll leave you alone, now. I hope you have a pleasant day._

And it was gone, leaving Butch to drift back into a dreamless, but disturbed, sleep.

_I don't believe in fate._

The sun shone down on Townsville, a beautiful Tuesday afternoon. The three Rowdyruffs flew across the Townsville sky, Butch and Boomer muttering mutinously behind Brick, although they knew perfectly well he could overhear.

"Don't know why he's forcing us to hang with the girlies," Boomer mumbled. Brick managed to push him, the navy-blue streak of light wavering off course for a moment.

"'cause his girlfriend asked him," Butch muttered back.

"Shut up, you two. It's free food."

"Yeah. Free ass, t -" Butch attempted.

"Don't make me go back there and kick your ass, sissy boy." Brick retorted.

"Nancy." Boomer scowled.

_Those dreams disturb me. It's the second night already, it's come and asked me to join. Will it keep coming, I wonder?_

The three girls had set up a picnic at the park. When the boys arrived, they were greeted quite cheerfully, Brick practically bowled over by Buttercup. The six of them were soon engaged in a game of football, where Butch was patiently trying to teach Bubbles to throw properly, though it seemed he was getting very frustrated at times. After a while of playing, Buttercup sat down to rest with a sandwich.

Not before long, she noticed Boomer coming in her direction, blonde hair distinctly ruffled. She waited for his inevitable arrival.

Boomer sat down across from her at the picnic table, slurring, "Hey, ssshButtercup." As she stared harder, she noticed his eyes were strangely unfocused.

"What's up with you? You look stoned," She frowned, tilting her head to one side. "Been drinking a lot lately?"

"Shhh, shhh... Puttercup, Butterpup... Putterbup... Well, yanno who you are... Butch... hates... you," he pronounced, staring straight at her. Drunk as he sounded, his voice had a certain serious tone to it, which persuaded her to take him seriously.

"W-..what?" She frowned deeper. "I.. don't get you. What..?"

"Butch... issh planning. To keel.. kill you."

Boomer soon rejoined the game of football with the other four, while Buttercup's attention was focused on Butch. _Would.. would he really? I don't really trust Boomer. _The frown remained on her face as she munched that sandwich. But just then, Butch, after tossing the football to Bubbles playfully, began a sudden descent down towards Buttercup.

"What the -" Boomer was right! She opened her eye lasers on him, his body twitching and spasming under the intense heat and electric current. When Buttercup let up her assault, Butch fell like a rock and hit the ground. There was silence all around.

"Bee-Cee?" Brick had a strange expression on his face. "W.. wha..."

By then, Blossom, Boomer, and Bubbles were already by Butch's side. "What? Why did you... Buttercup!" Blossom shrieked. Bubbles looked close to tears, worriedly shaking the charred Butch.

"I... thought he was going... to attack me," Buttercup whispered, streaking closer towards the figure of Butch on the ground. Boomer, who stopped long enough to send a glare up to Buttercup, helped Bubbles shake him.

"Bro! Wake up, bro!" Brick landed beside him, as Butch began to stir.

"..what? OW, F_CK! I feel like I've been thrown off a cliff..." Butch paused, squinting his eyes. Her. Up there. She'd done this.

Butch shook off Bubbles's tearful hug, and streaked into the sky. He wouldn't be leaving his brothers, but he'd like to have a chat with the dream dude. Now he was making sense.

_Now I know why._

Blossom looked visibly shaken, and almost immediately she began screaming at Buttercup. "Why?! What is WRONG WITH YOU?!" Boomer, however, had the sense to shush her.

"Shut up, girly. Brick'll put her right. Get home with Bubbles, now." He looked very, very serious at that moment, and Blossom, for once, was inclined to agree.

"..Alright. Bubbles, let's go. ...Bubbles?"

But it was too late, young Bubbles had streaked off into the sky after Butch, much against her sister's orders, and perhaps much against her own will.

"Bubbles!" Just before Blossom blasted off to follow her, Boomer, again, stopped her.

"Let 'er go. She can take care of herself. You get home, and I'll stay around to make sure Brick and yo' damn sis don't get into a spat. Now get outta here. I don't want you in my way."

Blossom, sputtering indignantly, nevertheless disappeared off in the direction of home. Boomer smartly beat a retreat to a short distance off, so as not to interfere with what was coming to Buttercup.

"...Bee-Cee. So short a while. Maybe it's my fault for trusting you," Brick said quietly. Buttercup trembled, opening her mouth several times, but was unable to find words.

"I don't know why you did it. Maybe you have a reason, maybe not."

"But... But Boomer! He came to me, he told me Butch was planning to kill me!"

"Buttercup. Do you really expect me to believe that?" Brick shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry, Bee-Cee. It's too fast, and I know I've made a mistake now. I'm sorry." He reached out slowly, touched her cheek, his face expressionless. "Goodbye."

Buttercup just gaped at him, open-mouthed, as he streaked into the sky, a navy-blue streak following his lead almost immediately from a distance.

_I've made my mind, there's no turning back now._

_So, Butch. You're back. Have you decided yet or do I have to tell you again? _The voice was.. more business-like today. No tormenting, no torturing. Just plain and simple.

"Yeah," Butch growled, eyes blazing. "I want to get them. I want to get them all. They can't do this to me."

_Good, good, good! _The voice seemed absolutely delighted at what he said, almost clapping his, or her, or its hands in joy. If it had hands. _Then... are you with me? Give me your word, and don't go back on it now._

"I'm with you."

_It is done._

"And, see, dear, that's what my plan is," Him giggled, dropping to skinny knees to stare underneath the car. 

"Awful cocky y'are, doan suppose you 'xpect me to be able to fight back?" She attempted to sit up under the car, bumping into the roof. "Ow, goddan it," she snarled, a strange accent invading her speech. As she pulls herself out from under the car, the figure is revealed to be none other than ...

_Her_. Sister of Him.

"Well, it's already done, isn't it?" Him clapped his hands once elatedly. "I already have one of them in my hands."

Her wiped grease off her face with the back of a hand. Contrasting slightly with her brother's red, her skin is fair, but she sports a leather jacket and tight jeans. "Ye look doawn on love, doan ya?"

"Now don't go on like that," Him pouted in response. "That angel you sent down to see me, he was awfully mean, you know..."

Suddenly, a small beam of light penetrated the darkness inside the Rowdyruff's room. "Butch?" Bubbles' head poked through the trapdoor, her voice quavering and frightened, but trying desperately to be brave. She peered around, squinting slightly, trying to discern any figures that could possibly be Butch. "Are you in here? I'm.. I'm sorry for what Buttercup did, she didn't mean to, really!..."

_How very conveeeeeeenient_. There was definitely some thrilled clapping at this new turn of events. _As your first test... since you are under **my** command, _the voice emphasized, _I believe you shall have just one simple test._

_ Destroy. Her._

Rey: Thanks for reading, comments welcome, address listed above. Argh, tomorrow's a definite study day. Enjoy the series. When I continue writing more energetically...

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	8. 

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Thanks for all the reviews. Um, I don't think the ruffs will die. Well, you'll have to wait and see. Mwahaha. This is, yes, going to be long, very long (if I don't write myself into a corner). Oh, and in the previous episode, I forgot to have Blossom take their picnic stuff home. Well, she did. Write that into your imagination.

PS. This is going to be short. More of Brick's thoughts than actual content, heh.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 8 - The Disappearances Begin  
**"Consequences that I've rendered have stretched myself beyond my means." - Staind

"D - Destroy her?" Butch stammered quietly, staring up at Bubbles in wonder. _Why did you have to follow me?_ Bubbles, upon spotting him, hopped down into the room, smiling.

"Hi.. Butch. I'm... I'm sorry for what Buttercup did. Really..."

_Well? What are you waiting for? She's **Buttercup's** sister. Buttercup did this to you, she hurt you, she **attacked **you, and made you helpless. In front of your brothers. In front of Blossom and Bubbles. In front of everyone, _the voice laughed maliciously. The words spurned him on, as his rage killed his reasoning. It'd be just like hurting Buttercup. He could practice on Bubbles. He could take them all down.

"Butch?" Bubbles' consoling expression slowly turned to fear, as she watched Butch. His form was slowly stiffening, his green eyes going from mellow to harsh. She took a step back slowly. "..Are you okay?"

Butch roared, and lept at her. She screamed, and everything went black.

_I did the right thing. I did the right thing. ...Buttercup will never like me again._

Brick was silent on the flight back towards the tower, but Boomer had a lot to say.

"It's _your_ fault, asshole," the blonde growled, a navy blue streak alongside a dark red one. "We could have avoided this whole mess if you hadn't gone all squishy-mushy with Butterbutt. 'tleast you made the right choice in the end."

A roar, and a scream. Brick tilted his head, quickening his pace. "Did you hear that?"

Boomer paused his tirade. "Yeah."

"Come on. Something's going down."

_Just like it said. Everything would be great for a while._

Buttercup watched Boomer and Brick disappear over Townsville. Reality slowly set in, and she broke down and cried into the dust. After a while, she managed to gather herself together, and blasted off, still sobbing, towards home.

_But it wouldn't take long to crash._

Buttercup burst through the girls' room door, and fell upon the bed, openly crying, rubbing grimy hands into her eyes. Blossom jerked upright, eyes wide.

"Buttercup! What happened? Did he hurt you?"

"N-no... He's... h-he's g-g-gone..." She forced, sniffing quietly. Blossom sighed, climbing onto the bed next to her.

"I don't understand why you did that, Buttercup. I won't ask you about it, either. Alright?" Buttercup sniffed again, scrubbing her right eye, and nodded. She glanced around slowly, the tears running rivers down the grime on her cheeks.

"Where's... where's Bubbles?"

"She set off after Butch."

"... oh no."

_..two down, it said._

Brick peeled back the trapdoor, and Boomer dropped down into the hideout.

"I don't see much, come on down," He called up, squinting through the darkness. Brick dropped down beside him, reaching to turn on a lamp nearby.

The light shone across the room, and Brick inhaled suddenly, his brother beside him blinking and rubbing at his eyes. The room was in ruins, furniture upset, burns from eye beams streaking the walls in charred designs.

And, traces of carmine against the stone floor. Blood. The scarlet streaks were splattered across the floor, across the walls, even on the ceiling.

Blood-streaked, tattered, there lay a black shoe. Bubbles' shoe.

_...how many more to go?_

Blossom and Buttercup dropped down into the Rowdyruff's room, just as Boomer bent to pick up Bubbles' shoe, hand trembling.

"WHAT DID YOU DO -" Buttercup began, but stopped abruptly. She stared around at the scene, digesting. Her eyes rolled up in her head, and she fainted.

Brick darted forward, supporting her before she crashed into the ground. He eased her down onto her back, his gaze flicking upwards to set on Blossom. "What the hell happened here?!"

"Why are you asking me?! We should be asking **you** that!"

Boomer shuddered, holding up Bubbles' shoe. A drop of blood eased its way down the polished surface and splashed on the floor in a miniscule puddle.

"Is... this... is this all that's left?"

There was a short pause, and Blossom gulped, closing her eyes. At Brick's feet, Buttercup stirred, and he knelt down to her.

"Bee-Cee. Bee-Cee, it's me, Brick," he said, shaking her gently. "Wake up."

"Oh... Oh, God, Brick. I'm sorry. Oh God, I just... I..." She blinked slowly, and sat up, staring at the gore which surrounded her. Her head bowed slowly. "..this is all my fault."

Boomer dropped Bubbles' shoe and exploded, "You're _damn right _this is your fault! Butch is gone and so's your queer sister!!"

"Boomer, shut up, okay?" Brick snapped. Boomer's mouth opened and closed, and he fell silent.

Blossom lay a hand on Brick's shoulder, steadying herself, cheeks pale. "Are there any other.. other clues? Other than her s-shoe?"

Buttercup slowly climbed to her feet, Brick managing somehow to support Blossom and help Buttercup up at the same time. "We haven't searched yet." Boomer looked up slowly, his gaze fixed on Blossom. He slowly shuffled over, taking her weight off Brick.

"...You don't look so good. Get some fresh air up there." He pointed up through the trapdoor. Blossom, who was now decidedly green, simply nodded and disappeared outside, the sounds of retching reaching their ears. Buttercup winced.

"Search for clues," Brick ordered, but his voice trembled. _That was the two down. What about the rest?_

"I haven't found anything," Buttercup mumbled, settling down next to Blossom. Boomer, followed by Brick flew out in front of them.

"Neither have we," Boomer said. Blossom shuddered, wiping her mouth.

"Is... then... then there's no .. no body?" She whispered, huddling down slowly. Buttercup gingerly set an arm around her shoulders.

Brick shook his head, and Blossom buried her face in her hands pathetically. _Then there's a chance she might be alive... _

Buttercup closed her eyes, holding her sister as comfortingly as she could. _What have I done?_

"Oh, look, they're not happy anymore!" Him tapped his wine glass with a huge grin, his sister seated by his side, dirty leather jacket and all. The TV in front of them flickered slightly, showing the four remaining children gathered together in a mess.

"Ah say, that weren' a noice thing t'do at all," Her frowned, sipping the champagne delicately. "Y'still think you've won, tho'?"

"Sister dearest, it doesn't seem as if you've done anything to remedy the problem."

"Noat yeet, anyway," Her burred like an English woman. Him chuckled.

"Let's see how you'll wriggle out of this one, hmm?"

Rey: Thanks for reading, comments welcome, address listed above. English exam tomorrow (compo and paper). I suppose this is like practicing for it.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	9. 

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1] - you might even decide what happens! Gimme opinions. I like 'em. Thanks for all the reviews, and to Kim-Mei for proofreading. It's going to be confusing from here onwards, but that's how I like my fics. Hang in there, we're getting closer to the closing curtains...

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 9 - And Downhill From There  
**"..she spreads her wings, she dreams of better things, she floats above the town..." - Semisonic**  
**

Him, dark cloak enfolding him, sat on an abandoned ledge on the cliffs some distance from Townsville, waiting. Butch would appear any moment, he knew, on the fringes of the city. With the body. The noxious stench of death reached him on the air, vapors with a hint of blood producing a sardonic smile on the face of the demon. 

Butch reeked like century-old trash bags and, on some subconscious level, he knew it. What his mind was centered on, however, was what he carried. He hobbled along the abandoned streets towards the border of Townsville, towards the Northern side. The creature who had freed him was waiting. He was drawn there, like bees to a flower, flies to a corpse. It was waiting for him.

Once along the edges of Townsville he half-heartedly took flight, the body dragged limply along in his hands, leaving a steady trail of blood. He reached that distant ledge and hauled himself over, dumping the cadaver unceremoniously in front of the goateed demon. Him, still cloaked, reached out and pressed a slender finger to what appeared to be the corpse's neck. He started at what he felt, stepping back abruptly.

"She's not dead."

By now, that voice was familiar to Butch, and he snarled around the bloodied foam dabbed on his jaws, strings of sticky saliva dangling helplessly from teeth bared like fangs. "She's not supposed to be. I want her alive. I will kill her later. When I have Buttercup."

Him paused to consider this new stage. Would it interfere with his plans? His strategy would undertake some change but nothing serious would develop. Lifting his hands slowly, Him paused to turn a glare down to Butch, almost drill-sergeant style, daring him to answer. "Do you hate Buttercup?"

"Hell yeah," Butch growled, spitting ferociously to one side, the very picture of the uncouth ruffian all parents have come to fear.

"SAY IT!" The demon roared, a blend of flames and lightning gathering at his fingertips to shoot into the starry sky dramatically. "Do you HATE her?!"

"I HATE BUTTERCUP!" An animalistic howl joined in unison alongside Him's voice, as Butch raised his arms to the stars.

Buttercup shook uncontrollably and squeaked, a strange feeling shooting through her gut. No tears came to her eyes, but Blossom, comforted by the Professor, sobbed unashamedly. The boys stood nearby impassively, though Brick's hands, curled tightly into fists, seemed to shake. With fear or with rage, no one could tell. The five, including the Professor, stood on the roof of the clock tower, waiting for the police to emerge with a report.

Minutes passed uneventfully, as they stood, listening to the sounds of the investigation under way. Brick, however, was not particularly patient, and he hovered towards the dark sky to think, joined by Buttercup moments later. She cleared her throat to announce her presence, and he looked up quickly.

"Brick." Her own voice sounded unsure, insignificant, coming out as almost a whisper. They both gazed up into the heavens... A romantic scene, but neither really had their minds on romance. He looked towards her, a troubled expression lining his features.

"Yeah, Buttercup?" Brick slowly, carefully brought a hand up to touch her cheek comfortingly. To let her know he felt the same way. To let her know she could talk; she wouldn't have to be afraid.

"I..." His touch seemed to soothe her, and, slightly more self-assured, she continued. "Maybe... maybe I shouldn't have brought you back, after all. Maybe I shouldn't have wanted to know, so badly..."

"Know what?" His hand fell back to his side, head tilting inquisitively. She took a deep breath, and continued.

"Why you were in my mind so much. Why you were in my dreams."

Brick inhaled slowly, turning his eyes slowly back to the sky. "I see."

"But... but lately I don't know," she confessed, looking down. "The dreams... They feel so real. Like something bad's gonna happen, and I'll never feel .. feel happy again. Feels like death. And maybe there's no way out of it. The.. the black clouds. Even if we defeat them. I know it's silly..."

"Sometimes there's truth in dreams," Brick replied quietly.

"Brick, I know I'm hasty, I know I'm stupid. If... if I break out again, you will forgive me, won't you?"

"Bee-Cee," he said, turning to take her hands up tightly. "It's not up to me to decide the future. I can't control what happens, but I can control what I do. And you can, too. I used to think Fate was all a big joke, but now I'm starting to believe in the same basic concept. It's not some person coming up with what's going to happen to us. We write our own fates with the things that we do, the decisions we make. I feel I'm going to make a few wrong decisions before all this is over. Don't you?"

Buttercup gave a weak smile, squeezing back at his hands, and nodding to his cryptic reply, which somehow made sense. "I... I understand, Brick."

"Good," Brick gazed back at her. "Now... now would you mind all that much letting me have some quiet time? I think perhaps you might need some, as well." He let her hands go, his gaze once more returning to the skies. Buttercup gave a mumbled reply and left Brick to his thoughts, returning to the roof of the clock tower.

"Thanks for letting us crash at your place, Professor," Boomer grunted, squeezed in the back seat of the Utoniums' car along with Buttercup, who leaned against the window opposite from Brick, and Blossom, whose head lolled on Buttercup's shoulder as she slept. The Professor seemed disturbed, and who could blame him? but he gave a polite reply.

"You're welcome, Boomer. You'll have to sleep in the living room, though, along with your brother. Is that alright?"

Brick frowned slightly out the window. "Sure, sounds fine." _They have to analyze the results. As if we don't already know what happened. Tomorrow, they said._

"Goodnight, girls," The Professor whispered into the room. "It's been a terrible day for you two, so get some good sleep." He popped his head around the corner of the hallway, turning his gaze down the staircase. "And goodnight to you boys, too. I'll wake you up in the morning for breakfast."

"Goodnight, sir," The two brothers managed to mumble, before they promptly fell asleep, each lying on couches with spare blankets wrapped around them tightly.

Her sighed, watching the boys fall asleep, while keeping one eye on her brother. You couldn't trust that bugger, after all. She knew it was a bit late to be working her touch into the game, but oh, that car in the garage still wasn't fixed, and she was so busy... With a sigh, she lifted her hands, focusing intently on one of the two boys. She knew the vital part that one was to play, but the outcome... Well, they both had to fight for that. 

_ Boomer..._

"Noo," grunted the blonde, reaching around for his pillow to cover his face, before coming to the realization that it was not nearby. He sat up, rubbing a fist into his left eye sleepily. "Whazzat?"

_Boomer. Pay attention._

The mannerisms of the voice reminded him greatly of a drill sergeant, and to some degree he paid his respect accordingly, by sitting up. "Yeah, whaa?" He questioned, lifting his head and staring about wide-eyed at this blank new environment. It almost reminded him of a scene from the Matrix, just the ever-pressing whiteness all around.

_Hello, dear. It has come to my attention that one of your brothers and a friend has gone missing. Am I correct in saying this?_

"Yeeah... And?" Straight to the point as ever, Boomer scratched the side of his head, climbing to his feet. He reached a hand out, almost expecting to find a white wall of some sort; but no, it was simply an extreme expanse of ashen ground.

_I can't reveal much now - I don't know much either, but from what suspect, I can tell you that when it comes to the crunch and there are two, the first savior is beside you, and the second lies within the lair of the voice. It's not what it seems like. Got it?_

"What?" Boomer lifted an eyebrow inquisitively, shaking his head, the voice's cryptic statement baffling him. "I don't get it."

There was a short, sharp pause, as if the voice was contemplating. _No_, it said finally, _There's no time. Just remember to the best of your ability. Two forever one, bring what may come. Lla sreuqnoc evol. _

With these three incomprehensible words echoing in his mind, Boomer was released back to his sleep, and, though it was dreamless, it remained troubled, and he tossed and turned on the couch, his subconscious almost fighting to remember what perplexing clues the voice had dropped. 

Buttercup stirred in bed, at first expecting to wake up to Bubbles' face, but remembering. She then turned to one side to speak to Blossom, but, noticing she was alone in the bed, and in the room, she sat up, grumbling, and crawled out of bed to wash up.

"Blossom!" The Professor called, from downstairs. "Breakfast!"

No pink streak down the stairs, no reply. Silence in the house, except for water running upstairs. "Blossom, is that you?" He called.

Muffled through toothpaste foam, Buttercup yelled back as she brushed, "It's not Blossom!"

"That's strange," The Professor frowned. "Where could she be?"

Blossom laughed to herself quietly, spinning on her tiptoes aimlessly as she wandered through Townsville. A dazed smile was plasted on her face as she spun, giggling gaily and generally not paying attention to the citizens of Townsville that happened to pass by, perhaps tipping their hats or waving.

_I cried, I cried, Bubbles is gone... Buttercup shouldn't have brought them back, but why, why, why wasn't I nicer to her before she was gone? And all the world is fine, and I'll walk away, and they won't even notice me gone, because Bubbles is gone already, and maybe they'll think I went with Bubbles to a happy place..._

Through her deranged thoughts and half-tears, half-grins, she noticed she had left the better part of the bustling metropolis they called Townsville and entered a rather seedy area, dark doorways that promised "adult fun" and "live shows" and produced neither; stores that sold things that were strange to a five-year-old mind twisted from self-inflicted misery. She didn't care, though, she walked on, and everything was fine.

One might consider the greatest danger to a five-year-old superhero in this part of town would perhaps be a kidnapper, or a rapist. Yet it was neither that appeared to Blossom; instead, a sinister shadow cast over her, announcing the arrival of the malevolent presence. Just as she looked up, a dark green streak filled her line of vision, and the last words she heard before blessed oblivion overwhelmed her were, "Heeeeeeeeeeere's Johnny!"

Rey: Thanks for reading, comments welcome, address listed above. Exams are still around, but Kim-Mei, my dear proofreader (and she knows the ENDING to MIT one...) urges me to write. So I shall. Thank her if you want. Lastly - once MIT is finished - I will, if it is asked for, write a sequel. Thank you, thank you very much.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	10. 

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1] - you might even decide what happens! Gimme opinions. I like 'em. Thanks for all the reviews, and to Kim-Mei for proofreading. It's going to be confusing from here onwards, but that's how I like my fics. Hang in there. There's been a slight change of plans in the ending - and to you smart people who know what Her's three words meant, congratulations. But, well, everything will make sense soon.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 10 - His Unwritten Apology  
**"You'll be sorry when I'm gone." - Blink 182

Buttercup came down the stairs for breakfast to find a frowning Professor waiting at the foot of the stairs. "Have you seen Blossom, Buttercup? I haven't seen her all morning! Is she still asleep?"

Buttercup paused, and shook her head. The Professor's frown tilted, with a worried air surrounding it. "Oh, dear..." He sighed, shaking his head. "I'm afraid she's gone missing. Buttercup, would you wake the boys up, please? I'm going to look around the house one more time, and if I can't find her, I'll have to file another police report."

Buttercup's forehead crinkled with a frown, as she hovered into the living room, where the two remaining boys were sprawled out on the couches lazily, snoring loudly. She settled down on the sleeping Brick's stomach heavily, promptly bringing him back into a state of consciousness. Hair tousled, he opened an eye slowly to glare at her. "Oi, girl, shove it. I need my beauty sleep."

"You ain't that beautiful," She snorted, hitting him with a couch cushion. Brick sat up, scratching the side of his head with a yawn.

"Well, I'm not, but you sure are," He snickered, reaching to grab his cap from the coffee table and jam it onto his head. The troubled expression on Buttercup's face remained, though, and he tilted his head inquisitively as his laughter quickly died away, studying her. "What's wrong?"

She did not deign to reply, instead hovering to the blonde lying on the opposite couch and shaking him roughly. "Wake up, Boomer."

"...Bee-Cee?" Brick frowned, knowing full well something was wrong. "What? Is Bubbles..."

"No," she said abruptly, as Boomer sat up, muttering something about 'early morning' and 'stupid girl', "The police couldn't come to a conclusion about Bubbles. It's... it's Blossom. She's gone."

Him, looking rather ridiculous in his glowing pink ballerina tutu and toeshoes, balanced neatly on one foot. He watched his sister, who was stretched out lazily on his couch. "Aren't you going to do something, dear?" He inquired politely, though his narrowed eyes would have suggested anything other than courtesy.

"What?" Her consisted of two personalities, just like her sibling, and presently her more eloquent persona was in charge.

"Well, I told you about my plan, and really, I think it's foolproof. I expect you've already figured out the rest, but... it surprises me that you aren't _doing _anything about it." Him, arms outstretched, took a flying leap over the couch, landing on his tiptoes smartly.

"Yes, I _have_ figured it out. I'm not as stupid as you would've liked me to be, like mum reminded me all the time when we were younger. Something about you asking whether I was born retarded and looking rather disappointed when informed I wasn't."

"That is not my point!" Him snapped. "What my point is, is that since you already know what they're going to do, aren't you going to stick your claws in and twist something to your liking? It's because of _you_ that all my plans for Townsville have failed!"

"Dad didn't expect to have two children. Not much I can do about the fact that he only had one town to pass on. Besides, it's pretty fair, isn't it? You got the town, I got the people. And another thing: How do _you _know I haven't done anything yet?" Her retorted, quite calmly.

Him paused sharply, sending a glance towards his leather-clad sister. Too much could be drawn from that one comment. "You've... you've intervened already? Why do I not already know about this? Don't reply to that," barked Him, noticing his sister about to make a sarcastic comment. "Ollie! OLLIE! Where _are_ you, Ollie?"

His sister simply smirked, kicking out one leg, and smoothing down her leather jacket. "Don't blow a gasket, now. I haven't done much. You know I don't like arbitrating with Fate... though it was always Dad and you who were up to that."

As Her finished speaking, a small, handy-sized demon with comical little wings fluttered through the nearest cavernous doorway. "You called, master?" It squeaked, cowering before Him.

"Fate, schmate. I never had respect for her and I never - Oh, Ollie! There you are. Now," he grinned malevolently at the small demon, which trembled nervously, "Have any reports about _her_ actions come in lately?"

"Err, well, that is to say, yes, sir! But you, you seemed very very busy, sir, and you were talking with ma'am, sir, so we thought we'd -"

"You _thought_? You THOUGHT?! _I'll_ do the thinking around HERE!" Him screeched, his body bursting into flames which crackled and popped menacingly.

The winged demon squealed in fright, fluttering backwards through the door. "Yes sir, sorry sir, will remember that, sir!" Her shook her head, chuckling, and appearing over the end of the couch.

"You horrible chap, you've gone and frightened him. And I don't think you should have said that, Fate has ears that go around -"

"Ears called Her, perhaps?" Him chuckled nastily at his sister's indignant expression. "You like to be on the good side of everyone, I know at least that much."

"Perhaps Fate will deal you a wild card," Her shot back. "I'm not the only reason your plans _all failed_."

"Don't rub it in," Him grimaced, while attempting to pirouette gracefully. "Now, if you'll excuse me," he warbled indistinctly, "I want you to go away now. Shoo! I have more important things to do."

"Absolutely horrible host, you are," The voice came back shortly. But as Him turned, intending to shoot fire and/or lightning at her, or at least set some sort of curse on her, he found nothing. Her always liked to have the last word...

"Eh? Whaddaya mean, _gone_?" Boomer hovered up from the tangle of blankets on his couch, to plop down on the second couch, next to Brick.

Buttercup knitted her brow, upset. "She's just gone. I haven't seen her this morning; not since last night."

Brick shrugged, tactlessly commenting, "Well, she'll probably turn up sooner or later. It doesn't really matter right now."

That did it for Buttercup. Her face turned a peculiar shade of crimson, the blood boiling in her veins. She managed to hold herself down for a moment or two, as the boys watched apprehensively, but it bubbled over, and she exploded.

"It doesn't _really matter_? She _doesn't really matter_?!" She snarled, using a word that she wouldn't normally have used. "What is WRONG with you?! She's my -" And here she interjected that word again, in adjective form, " - sister!! Get out! Of! My! House!!"

Normally, Brick would have stayed to argue, but that look on her face goaded him to do otherwise. Standing up, his hair still ruffled and his cap on the right way, Brick hovered to the door, opened it, and left.

Boomer turned his gaze towards Buttercup, opening his mouth as if he were about to say something, perhaps something harsh. But it was too late; she'd already left the room, and, even though the tension in the room dropped indefinitely, Boomer still had a sick feeling in his stomach. He, too, stood and left the sitting room, heading towards the laboratory where he sensed the Professor would be.

"Mr. Utonium? Professor, sir?" Boomer said weakly, hovering down the stairs into the laboratory. It was full of strange things that he longed to touch, break, fool with, but he resisted the itching urge. He had a certain respect for the Professor, and he wasn't quite sure where it had come from.

"Yes, B -... uhm, B -..."

"Boomer, sir." The blonde hovered up in front of the Professor, arms outstretched. "Um, sir. Buttercup kind of got into a fight with Brick, and Brick's, err, left."

The Professor started, looking up from his calculations. "What? Has she yelled at our other guest?"

"Um, well, it wasn't really her fault," he said hastily. "Don't talk to her about it, but I think she's upset about it, too... You see, um, she..." Boomer trailed off, turning his gaze to the ceiling.

The Professor frowned slightly, glancing back towards his work. "Well, I will respect your wishes and I won't talk to her about it, but will you see that... that she doesn't get too distressed? It's a very, very hard time for all of us... I'm so worried for Bubbles, and now Blossom's gone, and I can't do anything until the police have... well..." He trailed off as well, and moments later, their eyes met.

Boomer chuckled nervously. "I.. I will, sir. Thank you."

The Professor allowed himself a small smile, though the creased lines on his forehead suggested a different emotion. "You're welcome, B -.. Boomer. Run along, now."

Boomer left the laboratory, shutting the door quietly so as not to distract the Professor.

Buttercup, brushing her teeth in the bathroom, gazed into the mirror. She expected to see Brick's face again, for some reason, but it was different this time, sorrowful, but not accusing. It watched her sadly, and she closed her eyes, trying her best to ignore it.

Exiting the bathroom, she first noticed the sound of wind rustling. Wind? Secondly, she noticed the window open. Was she really that careless, to leave the window open the whole day? But the third thing, the most important thing, was the object that sat upon the girls' bed. She couldn't ignore it, she couldn't put it out of her mind. It was there.

Brick's cap sat upon her bed, slightly grimy. But it was there. He'd been there. But where was he now?

Rey: Haha. It's Friday! ::beams:: Keep those reviews coming. I live for reviews; I've realized. Come on! The box is just down there! You waaaaaant to... Oh, and now do you see why it's under the category suspense? Ha ha, I've been waiting for this point. BEG for the next chapter, BEG! .... -ahem- Sorry, I'm getting a little full of myself. Thanks for reading.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	11. Betrayal of a Savior

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Once again, thanks to Kim-Mei for proofreading... ish. This one's going to be short, because I intend to ... don't know, cliffhanger. It's meant to be hecka short, okay?!

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 11 - Betrayal of a Savior   
**"They can't be the Powerpuff Girls if there's only _one_."

Him, his face a mask of unpleasant vacuity, watched regally from his 'throne' as Butch entered the room. Behind him, a figure hunched over, its face in shadow. The demon could sense the sorrow emanating from the individual, and it sickened him; but behind that grief was rage, rage that could be harnessed to Him's evil plans. Smiling mordantly, he spread out his arms and stood, welcoming Butch back.

"Ah, so very good to see you again, Butchie." At the carelessly flung nickname, Butch scowled darkly, but did not raise his voice in protest. "I see you've brought one of your little friends today! Who could it be, I wonder," he stated, with no irony whatsoever.

The character stepped forward, dim light cast onto his mudstreaked face. Flaming red hair shone faintly beneath the illumination from underneath the grime. His eyes narrowed in victory? defeat? he advanced once more. Not bothering to kneel in reverence or whatever Him was expecting - a fact the demon did not find pleasurable - he spoke up.

"You know well enough who I am, and you know why I'm here." Brick declared this impassively, running a hand slowly back through his hair. "I want to join you."

"Oh, perfect!" Him giggled girlishly, clapping his hands in joy, and returning to his seat. "It's all going as I had planned." His hellish voice rang out around the room, echoing deeply, as if it shook the strings of time and space itself, but neither boy flinched. 

Boomer knocked on the girls' room door, his head swarming with thoughts. _Evol sreupnoc lla? The heck does that mean?_ Inside, he could faintly hear sobbing, from an all-too-familiar voice. The crying stopped abruptly, as he turned the doorknob and entered.

"Buttercup?" He asked. Buttercup was indeed there, her face tearstained, red eyes glimmering.

"Yeah?" She croaked, lifting a pillow that lay nearby to hug it.

"I don't mean to be rude, but..." And he paused, trying to ignore the strange look she gave him, "But if you're done crying, I think we ought to go look for Brick and Butch. And your sisters, of course," he added hastily. "You know anyone who could be holding all four of them right now?"

Buttercup seemed rather tired, but perhaps she thought some action would take her mind off their troubles. After a while, she nodded. Boomer gave a small grin.

"Which way would you like us to take outside? The door, perhaps?"

Buttercup shrugged, settling her pillow aside. She was quickly through the roof, Boomer following in her plaster-demolishing wake.

Again, through the roof, but this time inwards, and into none other than Him's house. The demon, languidly stretched out on his couch, held a tissue to his eye as he watched none other than the Titanic.

"Rose..." Jack, on the TV screen, minced, clinging to a floating board. Him suddenly burst into tears, hunched over, as Boomer and Buttercup stood there, both with an identically bemused expression on their faces. The demon turned to face them, straightening the lace around his collar.

"Why, hello, Buttercup," he simpered patronizingly, flicking a hand towards Boomer as means of a greeting. "Sorry about your disturbance, I was just watching a movie. Now what was it you wanted?"

"We want to know where you're keeping my sisters!" Buttercup snapped. Boomer, beside her, nodded sharply.

"Yeah, and my brothers," he growled. Him sat up slowly, throwing his head back and laughing. Both children were taken aback, recoiling quickly.

"I'm _sorry_, children, I really am, but I don't have your siblings. Now go away." Him turned back to the TV screen, and both children were as if forgotten. Boomer folded his arms across his chest and scowled, as if wondering what to do next. Buttercup's eyes were strangely unfocused, and as Boomer turned to her, mouth open to ask her a question, he noticed the distracted look on her face, and stopped mid-sentence.

_Buttercup? Buttercup, where are you? Blossom's here with me, Buttercup. Can you hear me? Buttercup, help us, wherever you are! It's s-scary in here... Blossom's... Blossom's sleeping, and she won't wake up..._

As Buttercup's expression became lucid once more, she focused her gaze on Him, and for that one moment the hate emanating from her was something Boomer could almost feel, something he could reach out and touch. He withdrew, but Buttercup suddenly reared up, and sped towards Him full-speed. The demon's head moved around as he was about to tell them once again to leave, but his eyes grew wide at the sight of the approaching Buttercup, and then it was too late.

"Take _this_!" She screamed, pummeling him faster than the eye could see. Almost instantaneously Boomer joined her, rapidly pounding and otherwise handing out a beatdown for Him. The demon, taken by surprise, had no choice but to call in his reserves to deal with them.

Buttercup, in her rage, was practically beyond hope, screaming obscenities and other foul things as she threw punches and kicks at the cowering Him. Boomer, however, was still relatively level-headed, and when he looked up noticed two objects which appeared to be flying towards them at full speed. He shouted a warning before the green object hit him, but before Buttercup could react the red object had hit her, dragging her away from her assault on Him, returning the injuries that had inflicted on the demon.

Butch furiously pounded his own brother, and Brick assailed Buttercup. Buttercup, taken by surprise and still very much in shock - _Brick, omigod, Brick, what? -_ did not so much as lift a finger against Brick. Boomer tried his best to retaliate, but Butch, powered by his animalistic rage, easily parried each of his shots. The colored streaks darted about at each other on Him's ceiling, and the wounded demon stood up to get a better look. It was in-house entertainment, after all.

"Brick, why are you doing this?" Buttercup managed to shout hoarsely, thrown bodily into the nearest wall and slammed into. Brick, his face tightly set, blazing hair uncovered by his cap, dignified her with a reply.

"Because I'm evil," he said simply, drawing back for the final punch, the very one which would easily put her out of action. Butch, on the other side of the room, leaned over a Boomer that no longer responded, drew back as well. Buttercup closed her eyes, turning her face aside, preparing herself for the inevitable, for she would not fight back...

Rey: ...Cliffhanger! Haha! I like reviews. Go on, the box is right down there. Argh, short short. Well... well, the next chapter will be longer, or at least I'll try. And action-packed!

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	12. Forgiveness and Victory

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Ha ha. Yes. Evil. Cliffhanger for this one? Maybe. And _fine_, call me Twisted Rey. I don't care. Hmmph. Hey, and I noticed my story got pushed back... like way back. -frowns, with cracking noises- Oh, and thank you for your... um... nice reviews. ^_^;

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 12 - Forgiveness and Victory  
**"You can write a thousand words, sing a pretty song, but nothing else will move my heart as much as an 'I'm sorry'."

But it never came.

Buttercup's tensed muscles relaxed slightly as she opened an eye. The fist which had been held up, threatening to crash down into her face, was now unfurled into a hand flexed over Brick's rugged features. And were those tears in his eyes...?

"Brick?" She tried her voice; it sounded insecure, insignificant, and was still slightly guttural. Brick lifted his head, his eyes tightly closed. A single tear's path was a jagged mark across his cheek.

"I'm... I'm sorry, Buttercup," Brick whispered. "I... wasn't myself..."

"It's alright," Buttercup said hurriedly, lifting her battered body up carefully. "Really, Brick. But you know what we have to focus on, don't you?" Brick self-consciously wiped his eyes clear and nodded; they were safe for the moment, for Butch was busily taunting a barely conscious Boomer. "You know where my sisters are..."

Brick quickly understood and was off in a flash. Him, now quite unconcerned with the whole situation, lounged on his couch, his attentions once more focused on the movie. Buttercup flew over to Butch, who leaned over the unconscious Boomer in the corner, nonchalantly tapping him on the shoulder.

"Hey. Sup, yo?" She pronounced casually. Butch froze, but otherwise didn't respond. Discouraged by this, she tried again.

"Yo, Butch-man. Pay a lil' attention h -" But she didn't get to finish, as Butch's fist swung around without warning, striking her in the side of the face. She went flying, her head ringing from the force of the blow. Butch twisted around, cat-like, and lept after her eagerly, nothing but his thirst for blood loitering in his mind.

Slammed into the wall once more, Buttercup slid towards the ground dazedly. But her path downwards was interrupted from another clout, courtesy of Butch, sending her sideways across the wall. He began to rain punches on her, until her already-battered body was further bruised and very sore.

She had barely enough time to draw a rattling breath before the next stroke came. Just as Butch drew back, as he had done over a Boomer in quite the same state, a new presence entered the room, and stopped him dead.

"Butch..." The voice rasped slightly, but it still had the same perky ring to it. The haggard form which slowly flew up to them was none other than Bubbles. Her arms were scored deeply, her face battered black-and-blue. But she was still alive.

Opening her wide, innocent eyes, and staring towards Butch, she slowly asked, "What are you doing, Butch?"

He uncurled his fist, arm dropping back to his side. At the same time, the rough grip he held on Buttercup's collar loosened slightly. "I... I... ... I didn't..."

"..I forgive you, Butchie," she said, her twisted face graced with a smile. Butch, as if coming out of a trance, let go of Buttercup completely. The evil glint in his eye was no longer there, him having been brought back to his senses by none other than sweet Bubbles.

Out of the corner of his eye, Butch saw Brick return, an unconscious Blossom in his arms. He tensed himself as Brick's mouth dropped open and he almost dumped down Blossom to drive him away from Bubbles. He quickly retreated, his hands stretched out. Bubbles, confused at his behavior, turned about sharply to gaze at Brick.

"It's alright, Brick," she called quietly. "He's back to normal."

Him, who had finally realized that the boys and girls were no longer fighting, turned about on his couch. His eyes widened in shock, and he screamed, "What is going _on_ here?!"

Butch turned towards him cool as a cucumber, eyes narrowed slightly. "Good, he's finally with us. Well, Him, what do you make of all this? Me, Bricky-boy over there, and the girlie," he said, gesturing towards Buttercup near the ground. "Oh, and Bubbles. You gonna have the guts to fight us, eh?"

Blossom, in Brick's arms, began to stir. He hushed her, looking slightly nervous, and flew towards where Boomer lay, setting them in one spot. Then he streaked upwards to join Butch, as Buttercup did as well. Bubbles, still rather weak, faltered in mid-flight and settled to sitting near the two unconscious children.

"Yeah, watcha gonna do, huh?" Buttercup snickered, rather painfully.

A slow, sick grin spread across Him's face, unnerving the three fit heroes. He raised his arms and laughed, and as he did so, began to grow in size.

And grew. And grew. Until he was humongous, the top of his head brushing the roof like a tale out of Wonderland, and ridiculous in his frilled dress and high heels. But none dared to say so, for their mouths were all wide and hanging.

"What am I going to do?" He echoed mockingly, a derisive grin on his evil face. "I'm going ... to fight you!"

A red streak, closely followed by two green streaks, sped towards Him, as he simply laughed. Though they didn't notice it, energy gathered at Him's fingers, and soon his hands glowed with power. Just as they reached his face, he brought his hands up, and let loose the energy, intending to take all three of them out of the fight easily. He knew this was a one-shot deal, as he would be drained of power for a few minutes after the incredible blast he would unleash.

The forceful burst, for Him had not aimed quite as well as he thought, struck Butch head on. It was clear Butch was racked with pain as he stopped in mid-flight, electricity sizzling over his flesh hungrily, his mouth open in a silent scream. A moment or two later he fell, dropped to the ground like a rock.

And now, the three remaining participants in the fight paused; Brick and Buttercup staring down at Butch fearfully, Him cursing himself. He laboriously began to gather energy towards himself again, though not as easily as before. He wouldn't get to finish the attack he had begun, though, as Brick slowly lifted his head, eyes burning with fire.

"You... son... of... a... B_TCH!" Brick screamed. The flames blazing in his eyes appeared to spread over his entire body, and he lifted his arms, now a barely recognizable ball of flame. Buttercup looked up towards Him, the same rage burning down into her heart, into her core. Green fire engulfed her, and together, as if they had practised it, done it a million times before, the fireballs sped towards Him faster than they had ever flown before, and he was powerless to stop them.

Synchronized in their movements, they assailed Him brutally, somehow burning his skin with every touch, though he spent his life in fire. This was a different fire, and many would question what kind of fire it was, but there was no real answer. Was it a blaze of love, of rage? The only thing anyone would ever come to a conclusion for was that it was very, very effective. Him tried his best to intimidate them by mustering up his powers and growing larger, but this only succeeded in blasting the roof of his house off, and he weakened once more. Around them, the walls fell outwards, but Buttercup and Brick fought on obliviously.

As the two of them pummeled at him mercilessly, he turned to begging them to stop, but they were beyond reason. Together, with one final flourish, they struck Him to the ground, where he lay unmoving.

Slowly, the fire on their bodies burnt out, leaving them somehow unharmed. Buttercup, breathing heavily, descended towards ground towards the unconscious form of Butch. Bubbles was already leaning over him, tears running down her cheeks, the awakened Blossom and Boomer sitting dully beside her. As Brick and Buttercup touched down, they stared at Butch sorrowfully.

His body was scorched completely black, his clothes practically in ashes. Possibly only through the strength given to him by the chemical X was his body able to withstand the great heat and electrical shock, preserving him, but his mind...

"Is... is he..." Buttercup began, her voice trembling, and she trailed off. Brick, beside her, remained still.

"...Butch..." Bubbles closed her eyes, huddling down, her body racked with silent sobs. Boomer, though it was against his nature, reached over and lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. The five bowed their heads sorrowfully, in mourning, Blossom herself shedding tears, the rest struggling to hold them back. Bubbles' glimmering tears stained the charred flesh on Butch's face, as slowly she bent towards him and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"I didn't know you very long," she whispered. "I guess I didn't know you at all... I'm not like Buttercup... she's always so sure, she knew who she loved, and... she's happy... I'm sorry, Butch, I never got to tell you... I love you, Butch. I love you..."

"...mmmph..." The body shook, and gave a rasping, hacking cough.

"..Butch?" Blossom blinked slowly, her eyes still slightly unfocused. The four of them jerked in sudden realization that Butch had just moved.

Bubbles' tearstained face broke into a smile and she gave Butch a hug, as they all looked at Brick expectantly, Buttercup alternating glances at him and Butch, with an unasked question: _What do we do?_

Brick looked down towards Butch, who sat up painfully with Bubbles' help. "I... we ought to get him... ho - To a hospital. Bubbles, you, and..." He stopped, frowning slightly in confusion. "Can you fly?"

"I can carry him," Bubbles offered. Blossom, who stood up behind her, smiled knowingly. Boomer limped towards Brick, standing nearby.

"Let's go see the Professor first. Think he'll be a buncha help," he suggested. Buttercup nodded, advancing to help Butch into Bubbles' arms. Blossom, unsteady on her feet, was supported by Boomer - they supported each other. Brick, though he dearly wanted to help, knew his role.

The red streak slowly ascended into the sky, leading the way back towards the Utonium house.

Her, in her leather duds, leaned over an unconscious Him in the rubble of his home, with some smelling salts. Needless to say, within moments Him had been awakened from what seemed like a dead sleep.

"Nyah nyah," Her mocked, although she really had no need to, helping him to his feet. Once he was standing, he brushed her aside angrily, and folded his arms across his chest.

"Shut up. I have to get a new demon servant now, because of you, and a new house, AND a new army. Dad'll be upset, and I'll tell him it was your fault." 

"Oh yes, always blame it on the goody-two-shoes, huh?" She frowned, feigning a hurt expression.

The pair walked - and limped - onwards, away from Him's crushed home. Brother and sister exchanged banter, though it was difficult to tell if it was good-natured or malicious. But it wouldn't matter either way, as both of them eventually disappeared into the distance.

Rey: Oh, lovely... Finally. But guess what, it's not the end! I hope not, anyway. I'm planning for at least an epilogue to this; I can't leave you with them just going off. And if you want _more_, .. tell me! By e-mail or by IM, or even by MSN Messenger. Or by reviews. (Hint hint.) Anyway, I'll leave you with that thought. Thanks for reading.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



	13. Forever Starting Anew

Author

Author's Note: Contact me at [theak472@aol.com][1]. Twisted Rey says hello, and thank you for reading all the way to the end. This chapter's here just to, you know, wrap things up.

**Maybe I'm Twisted  
by Rey**

**Chapter 13 - Forever Starting Anew  
**"She's got it all worked out..." - Semisonic

There was a dull knocking at the door. Butch and Bubbles, who shared the same ward, now simultaneously lifted their heads, Bubbles raising a hoarse voice to call, "Come in."

Into the room trooped Buttercup (looking a little bruised, but healing), Brick (also rather bruised), Boomer (with his arm in a sling), and Blossom (on crutches).

Smiling brightly, Buttercup rushed to Bubbles' side, Blossom not far behind. "Oh, Bubbles! Bubbles, we were so worried 'bout you..." Bubbles giggled quietly, wincing in the same instant. The bruises on her face had been treated, and all the scorching treated and bandaged.

"I'm gonna be okay, guys. I'm getting all better, see?"

Around the bed next to Bubbles' stood Brick and Boomer, heads bowed self-consciously. Butch, who had survived his crushing ordeal, was wrapped up in some places with rolls of bandages. On his face, it was clear to see the skin was beginning to grow again. His hair was thinner, but most of it was still intact.

"Yo, my brothas," Butch managed to rasp. Boomer lifted his head, and gave a lopsided half grin. No more words needed to be spoken, for Butch easily understood. They'd been terribly worried about him too.

Just then, a nurse bustled into the room. Auburn curls framed her face, and her mannerism reminded the girls of Ms Keane. She moved about the ward, inspecting the two children, and writing something down on her clipboard. Slowly becoming aware of the children's eager gazes, she lifted her head to smile at them.

"Yes, there's good news. They're both healing at an incredible pace, and I do believe that later this afternoon Professor Utonium will be around to pick you all up. Now do have fun, but remember, no getting up for -" she paused to glance at the clipboard, "Butch, and try not to get too excited..."

"Bubbles," Blossom said helpfully. The nurse nodded, and beamed at them all cheerfully.

"I'm sorry, but I must be off now. Goodbye, little children," she chimed, hustling out of the ward quickly.

The children had many ways of amusing themselves, and time passed quickly. When it was nearing evening, there came a knock at the door, and the Professor entered with a smile.

"Well, hello, there, children. I hope you've been having a fun time! The doctors say it's okay for you to come home now, Bubbles, and for you, uh..."

"Butch," Boomer supplied.

"Yes, Butch, it's okay for you to go home now." 

There was an awkward pause, Buttercup shuffling her feet nervously. The Professor looked from her to the boys, and blinked. "Don't... don't you have any place to stay?"

"Well, we could stay at Mojo's -" Brick began.

Buttercup interrupted sharply, glaring at Brick. "No!" The Professor looked slightly shocked, but quickly regained his composure. 

"Err, well... I suppose you boys can stay out our house, then. For a while, at least. There's an extra room upstairs, the guest room..." The boys looked flabbergasted, and grins broke out on their faces slowly.

_Home? A home? For us?_ Butch thought, and a glance at his brothers' shocked expression confirmed they were thinking just the same thing. The Professor smiled back, and knelt down to speak with the boys at their height.

"Yes, we have space for you. But you have to be very good."

Boomer pumped his good arm in the air enthusiastically. "Woohoo! Kick _ass_!" Butch, if he had been able to, would have jumped for joy. The girls themselves looked astonished as well, but they appeared to take it well. At least Buttercup and Bubbles did; Blossom looked slightly worried for perhaps the state of their house. She looked up at the Professor, hoping he knew whether he'd made the right decision or not.

The Professor himself look quite happy at the way things were turning out. The nurses arrived to help Butch and Bubbles out of their hospital beds, before the six injured children and the Professor were squashed into the car, and driving back homewards.

"Well..." Butch said, resting his head on his hands, seated at the coffee table in the living room, across from Brick. A week or two had passed since they had returned to the living world. The skin on his face and hands was almost fully healed, and he was back to his normal spunky, rude self again. "It's nice living here. Not as bad as I thought, anyway" They'd all changed, he knew very well. He himself most of all, perhaps. Brick, for once without his cap, scratched his head, reclining on the sofa.

"Yeah. Not so bad with the girls. The Professor's okay, too." The redhead admitted. He tugged his jersey down a little further, glancing over his shoulder into the TV 'room'. Buttercup and Boomer were enthusiastically playing a video game, Blossom and Bubbles watching. He smiled slightly, turning back to face Butch. "Not so bad after all."

"It's... well... it's a home. Our home, now." Butch himself smiled a little at the thought, stretching out on his side of the couch. "I thought we'd be fighting, well, all day long with the girls. But.. we seem to be getting along pretty well. Maybe some fights now and then... But like the great John Lennon says, make love, not war. 'course, I'm still a fighter... maybe one day..." He trailed off.

"Maybe one day, what?" Brick smirked slightly, sprawling out with his cap laid on his stomach. "You don't have to hide anything from me, I'll find out sooner or later, anyway."

"Maybe one day I'll be a lover, too."

"Aw, come on. I doubt it. No girl's gonna want your pig's arse face," Brick snickered, sending a sidelong glance towards his brother. "Me, well, I'm the cool dude. And I'm good-looking, too."

"_And_ modest." Butch added sarcastically. "Besides, why do you have to like that... I forgot her name... Buttercup, yeah, that's it. Why Buttercup? Why her, why so fast? So many other girls out there, you have to fall in -" He paused, to make a face. "Fall in _love_ with that two-dollar wh -"

"Don't call her that," Brick hissed. "She might not be beautiful, she might not have a nice voice, or nice eyes, or whatever. She could be _hideous._ But me? I love her not because she's beautiful, but she's beautiful because I love her."

After a short pause, Butch looked up. "Spoken true, brotha," he said, doing his best to make it a sincere tone. 

"I appreciate your effort," Brick grinned.

"Hey, Buttercup," Brick called, gazing up the tree in the park. It was her favorite spot, he was beginning to realize. The Professor had treated them all to another outing at the park; Butch trying to teach Bubbles and Blossom to throw a football properly, with an amused Boomer looking on. Buttercup turned her eyes downwards, lizard-like, and smiled as she recognized him immediately.

"Hey, cutie. Come on up," She said, patting the space on the branch beside her. Brick chuckled, hovering up slowly to seat himself next to her.

"So sup, Bee-Cee?" Brick said, chastely planting a kiss on her cheek. "Just been thinking?"

Buttercup sighed, leaning her head onto his shoulder. "Well... those dreams that made me bring you three back. In my dreams, you were... well... leaving me. Telling me you had to go, you were sorry, and..." Her voice grew faint, and she fell silent. Brick smiled, turning his head to kiss the top of hers, and smell the faint honey-scent of her hair.

"Maybe... maybe it's symbolic, Bee-Cee," he said, holding her close. "'cause I left my cap with you... good thing you kept it, too... and, well, I had that bad turn... kind of like leaving you... but I'm back now, aren't I?" He smiled again.

"Yeah, you are..." Buttercup smiled back, looking reassured.

The two sat together in silence for a while, until Brick thought of a question.

"Why'd you do it, Bee-Cee?" He asked. "I mean, why'd you bring us back? Those dreams? Just... well, I don't believe in it much myself, but, just Fate? Chance?"

Buttercup was quiet, as she searched for an answer. "I honestly don't know," She finally confessed. "Maybe I'm twisted."

Brick laughed quietly, running his hand through her hair slowly. "That answers everything."

Rey: END! ..Nice, is it not? My dear proofreader will churn up an epilogue sooner or later. Um... I suppose I'll write a sequel about now. I've already got the idea in my head. Just for now, though, grace me with thy reviews. I like 'em, you should know that by now.

   [1]: mailto:theak472@aol.com



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